COMMUNITIES AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT

Local Government Finance

Clive Betts: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much revenue has been raised from (a) council tax and (b) business rates in each year since the introduction of council tax.

Brandon Lewis: holding answer 12 November 2013
	Historical figures on council tax and business rates revenue can be found in the annual publication, “Local government financial statistics England”, copies of which can be found online and which are also presented to Parliament each year further to section 168(4) of the Local Government Act 1972.
	www.gov.uk/government/collections/local-government-finance-statistics-england

Local Government: Tower Hamlets

Andy Sawford: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  what communication he has had with the London Borough of Tower Hamlets about adherence to the Code of Practice on Local Authority Publicity;
	(2)  how many local authorities he or Ministers in his Department have written to with regard to their observance of the Code of Practice on Local Authority Publicity.

Brandon Lewis: Ministers have corresponded on a number of occasions with councillors at Tower Hamlets, who are rightly concerned that the council continues to fail to comply with the code. Ministers recommended that the issue should be taken up with the local (district) auditor; however, it has become clear that such auditors are unwilling or unable to take action on clear breaches of the code and abuses of taxpayers’ money. Hence, we are legislating via the Local Audit and Accountability Bill.
	When the Code of Recommended Practice on Local Authority Publicity was revised in March 2011 my officials wrote to all local authority chief executives drawing their attention to the code. My officials wrote to all local authority chief executives again in April 2013, enclosing a copy of the Government's consultation document on proposals to give the code greater force.

Non-domestic Rates: Public Houses

Simon Danczuk: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if he will take steps to promote the take-up of rural rate relief by public houses when they are the last public house in the village.

Brandon Lewis: holding answer 18 November 2013
	This Government takes every opportunity to promote take-up of all non-domestic rates reliefs. However, having noted the content of early-day motion 599 sponsored by my hon. Friend the Member for Bristol North West (Charlotte Leslie), we will be writing to local authorities to remind them of their powers in relation to rural rate relief. Information on rural rate relief is also included in the gov.uk advice to firm on business rates, at
	www.gov.uk/apply-for-business-rate-relief
	More generally, we have also made it easier through the Localism Act for ratepayers to claim small business rate relief and have temporarily doubled the level of discount. We also continue to encourage local authorities to consider using the powers which we have given them to grant local discounts as well as discretionary hardship rate relief. Central Government automatically funds 50% of the costs of discounts granted.

Planning Permission

Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what recent guidance his Department has given to local authorities on tackling unauthorised development.

Nicholas Boles: My Department published a guide entitled “Dealing with illegal and unauthorised encampments: a summary of available powers” in August 2013, at
	https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/227492/130807_Dealing_with_illegal_encampments_format_and_ISBN.pdf
	which includes planning enforcement powers.
	In addition, as set out in the Budget, the Government has fundamentally overhauled planning practice guidance to ensure this provides up to date, easily accessible advice on planning. This is in line with the recommendations of Lord Taylor of Goss Moor (December 2012), providing much needed simplicity and clarity that will better support planning delivery and growth. This includes guidance on ensuring effective enforcement.
	The new draft guidance suite was open on the internet for informal comment until 14 October 2013; all contributions made during this time will be taken into consideration in finalising the guidance.

Planning Permission

Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if he will take steps to improve the procedures for using Article Four Directions to protect residents from development under permitted development rights.

Nicholas Boles: The process for making an article 4 direction is well known and was simplified in 2010. 43 local authorities having consulted their community and put a direction in place this year.
	We have recently revised our guidance to ensure it provides up to date, easily accessible advice. The detailed guidance on making article 4 directions is available on the beta site of the National Planning Practice Guidance:
	http://planningguidance.planningportal.gov.uk/blog/guidance/when-is-permission-required/what-are-permitted-development-rights/#paragraph_034

Planning Permission: Liverpool

Louise Ellman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government for what reasons he has called in Liverpool city council's consideration of proposals for the Welsh Streets in Liverpool; and if he will make a statement.

Nicholas Boles: holding answer 21 November 2013
	Save Britain's Heritage and a number of other interested parties made a request that the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government call in for his own decision the demolition and redevelopment of the Welsh Streets area of Liverpool. On 24 September, the Secretary of State issued his decision calling in the application having considered the proposal carefully against the call-in indicators set out in the written ministerial statement of 26 October 2012, Official Report, columns 71-72WS. The call-in decision letter has been placed in the Library of the House.

Secondment

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many private sector employees have been seconded by the private sector to his Department; what the name was of the company from which they were seconded; and whether any of those employees have worked on drafting legislation.

Brandon Lewis: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to PQ 175814 today, to the hon. Member for Derby North (Chris Williamson).

Secondment

Chris Williamson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many staff have been seconded to his Department over the last two years; for how long they were seconded; and from which organisation.

Brandon Lewis: holding answer 18 November 2013
	The Department seconds staff in to the organisation in order to help bring in external expertise across the Department's responsibilities such as for local government, housing, planning and communities. Since November 2011, 37 staff were seconded into the Department, details of these are in the following table.
	
		
			 Organisation Start date End date 
			 Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service 1 November 2011 31 October 2014 
			 Humberside Fire and Rescue Service 1 November 2011 31 December 2014 
			 London Fire and Rescue Service 7 November 2011 31 October 2014 
			 Hereford and Worcester Fire and Rescue Service 19 November 2011 30 June 2014 
			 Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service 1 December 2011 30 November 2013 
			 Norfolk Fire and Rescue Service 19 December 2011 18 December 2013 
			 Lincolnshire Council 4 January 2012 31 March 2012 
			 Essex Fire and Rescue Service 2 April 2012 21 September 2012 
			 Lincolnshire Fire and Rescue Service 10 April 2012 28 September 2012 
		
	
	
		
			 Lincolnshire Fire and Rescue Service 16 April 2012 17 September 2012 
			 Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service 16 April 2012 21 September 2012 
			 Hereford and Worcester Fire and Rescue Service 1 June 2012 30 September 2012 
			 Hertfordshire Fire and Rescue Service 1 June 2012 30 September 2012 
			 London Fire and Rescue Service 7 June 2012 6 June 2014 
			 Hertfordshire Fire and Rescue Service 1 June 2012 9 September 2012 
			 Surrey Fire and Rescue Service 1 July 2012 30 September 2012 
			 Princes Trust 2 July 2012 1 July 2014 
			 Cheshire Police 11 July 2012 15 July 2013 
			 Sheffield City Council 3 September 2012 31 March 2014 
			 University of Nottingham 10 September 2012 9 May 2013 
			 Winchester City Council 17 September 2012 16 September 2014 
			 London Borough of Brent 17 September 2012 16 September 2014 
			 Audit Commission 25 September 2012 24 March 2014 
			 Environment Agency 1 October 2012 31 March 2013 
			 Savills 10 October 2012 18 July 2013 
			 Nottingham City Council 30 October 2012 31 December 2013 
			 Savills 5 November 2012 4 February 2013 
			 New Haven Housing Association 7 January 2012 6 January 2014 
			 Essex Fire and Rescue Service 7 January 2012 6 January 2014 
			 Stanford Mallinson Ltd 2 April 2012 31 March 2015 
			 Grainger Plc 1 April 2012 31 March 2015 
			 EC Harris 29 April 2012 31 March 2015 
			 Buckinghamshire Fire and Rescue Service 7 May 2012 6 May 2014 
			 Valuation Office Agency 17 July 2013 27 March 2014 
			 Westminster City Council 3 September 2012 2 September 2014 
			 West Sussex Council 21 October 2012 18 April 2014 
			 Camden Council 4 November 2012 20 December 2013

Social Rented Housing

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many families living in the social rented sector moved home within that sector in each year since 2008 for which data is available.

Kris Hopkins: The number of households with children taking up a general needs social letting having moved from within the social sector is shown in the following table.
	Social lettings to households within children make up around 35-40% of all general needs social lettings each year.
	
		
			  Number of households with children moving within social sector As percentage of total households with children taking up social letting 
			 2012-13 33,594 40 
			 2011-12 38,648 39 
			 2010-11 42,914 39 
			 2009-10 41,584 39 
			 2008-09 40,238 37 
			 Source: Continuous Recording of Lettings (CORE)

HOME DEPARTMENT

Animal Experiments

Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps she is taking to reduce the number of animals used in experiments; and if she will make a statement.

Norman Baker: In 2010, the Government made a commitment to work to reduce the use of animals in scientific research in “Coalition: our programme for Government”. The Coalition Commitment is not concerned with just baseline numbers, but encompasses the Replacement, Refinement and Reduction (3R's) more broadly, putting them at the heart of a science-led approach.
	We will be publishing a Delivery Plan imminently that will set out how the Government is supporting and encouraging these advances and the programmes and policies through which Government will continue to deliver its commitment. The consequence will be accelerated take-up of the 3R's both domestically and internationally, set on the tenets of good science, good animal welfare and good for the UK and economic growth.
	The commitment is being delivered through a science-led programme led by the National Centre for Replacement, Refinement and Reduction of Animals in Research (NC3Rs), an organisation with a strong record in reducing animal use.
	The NC3Rs closely involves Government departments and agencies, the Home Office Inspectorate, the research community in both academia and industry, and others with relevant animal welfare interests.

Consultants

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many consultants were engaged by her Department in (a) 2010, (b) 2011, (c) 2012 and (d) 2013 to date; which companies were used; and what the cost was in each year.

James Brokenshire: The Home Department's commercial objectives require consultancy services to be commissioned in terms of defined output, not in terms of individuals assigned by the firms to deliver that output. Therefore, the Department does not employ individuals under contracts for consultancy services or keep records of how many individuals are working on each consultancy engagement. Carrying out an exercise to obtain these numbers would incur disproportionate cost.
	The names of the consultancy companies that were used by the Home Department are listed as follows:
	Consultancy supplier list: Consultancy companies used by the Home Office during 2010-11, 2011-12, 2012-13 and 2013-14
	Actica Consulting Ltd
	Advantage Technical Resourcing
	Ahmad El Terk
	Alchemica
	Alpinair
	Altius Consulting Ltd
	Always Thinking Associates
	Amtec Consulting Group
	Analysys Mason Ltd
	Andriana Nadoo Consulting Services
	Asb Action Ltd
	Ashridge Consulting Ltd
	Ask Europe plc
	Aspire Recruitment Consultants Ltd
	Assessment & Development Consultants Ltd (A&DC)
	Atkins Management Consultants
	Barco Control Rooms GMBH
	Berkshire Consultancy Ltd
	Birnberg Peirce & Partners
	Bramble CC Ltd
	Brian Robson
	Bristol Muslim Cultural Society
	Broadcasting Support Services
	Business in the Community
	Butler & Young
	Capgemini UK plc
	Capita Resourcing Ltd
	Capital Quality Ltd
	Cargyll Consultants
	Centre for Accessible Environments (The)
	Centre for International Forensic Assistance (CIFA)
	CGMS Consulting
	Channel 3 Consulting Ltd
	Colliers CRE Clients Account
	Collyer Rose
	Concerto Partners LLP
	Conscious Solutions
	Cordis Bright Ltd
	CT International Solutions Ltd
	Cubiks Ltd
	Dame Sue Street DCB Ltd
	Dashwood Consulting Ltd
	David Birch Consulting
	DBI Consulting
	Deloitte MCS Ltd
	Detica Ltd
	Digital Public Ltd
	DMA Consultancy Ltd
	Drivers Jonas Deloitte
	Dulani Kulasinghe
	Duncan Macquarrie Associates Ltd
	Ecctis Ltd
	EDSL Ltd
	Emerging Technology Serv Ltd
	Emergn Ltd
	ENDC Accounting and Consultancy Ltd
	Ernst and Young LLP
	Evolve Business Consultancy Ltd
	Experis Ltd
	Faithful & Gould
	Fast Future Research Ltd
	Forensic Telecommunications Services Ltd
	Gardiner & Theobald
	GDA Ltd
	Global Freight Services Ltd
	GNS-Inspire Ltd
	Gosling Consultancy Ltd
	Grant Thornton
	Harmer Consulting
	Haverstock Associates
	Hays IT
	ICMPD
	Info-Assure Ltd
	iO1 Ltd
	Ionann Management Consultants
	IRN Consultants Ltd
	Isos Partnership
	J L Consultancy
	Jonathan Spencer Consultants Ltd
	Jones Lang Lassalle
	Judith Gardner Independent Consultants
	Key Forensic Services Ltd
	KIS Solutions Ltd
	Knowledgeable Ltd
	KPMG LLP
	Lokahi Foundation
	M & M Research Ltd
	Mantech Solutions and Technologies
	Mark Veljovic T/A CT International Solutions Ltd
	Matrix Research and Consultancy Ltd
	Metafore Partners LLP
	Metaltech Consulting Services
	Methods Consulting Ltd
	MJMNI
	Mott Macdonald
	Mouchel Management Consulting Ltd
	Navigation Consulting Ltd
	Newsfury Ltd
	Nichols Group Ltd
	Novare Consulting Ltd
	Olorin Consulting
	PA Consulting Services Ltd
	Paul Martin Associates
	PCUBED
	Pendragon Global Consulting Ltd (in administration)
	Pentarch Consulting Ltd
	Perpetuity Research & Consultancy International Ltd.
	Peter Tickner Associates Ltd
	PMMS Consulting Group Ltd
	PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP
	QBM
	QI Consulting
	Qinetiq Ltd
	Quadrangle Group LLP
	Quask AG Ltd
	Reply Ltd
	RJG Management Consulting Ltd
	Robin Ryde Consulting
	Roke Manor Research Ltd
	RQ Consulting
	Safety Net Associates Ltd
	Sandhill Consultants Ltd
	Sandy Brown Associates LLP
	SAS Drivers Jonas (France)
	Saville Consulting UK Ltd
	Schellekens Consultancy (The)
	Scott Blinder
	Scott Wilson Ltd
	Serco Ltd
	Servoca Resourcing Solutions Ltd
	Seven Questions Consulting Ltd
	Shared Intelligence
	SHD Consulting Ltd
	Smart Consulting
	Smartsourcing plc
	Spring Technology
	SQW Consulting
	Stanton Marris
	STI Consultancy Ltd
	Stonecourt Consulting Ltd
	Synergy Group
	Systems Consultants Services Ltd
	Tam Support Services Ltd
	Tangram Architects & Designers
	The Oxford Group
	Thompson Aviation
	TMP (UK) Worldwide
	Tonic Consultants Ltd
	Tony Hurrell Consulting
	Tracker Network UK
	Trenton Consultants Ltd
	Tribal Helm
	UCL Consultants Ltd
	Vega Consulting Services Ltd
	Verdant Consulting Ltd
	Walker-Cox Ltd
	Warwick Business Consultancy Ltd
	Winckworth Sherwood
	WOR Consultancy Ltd
	WT Partnership
	X-Net
	Ziona Strelitz Associates
	Zircon Management Consulting Ltd.
	The cost for consultancy for the financial years 2010-11, 2011-12, 2012-13 and 2013-14 to date is as follows:
	
		
			 Consultancy spend 
			 £000 
			  Full year  
			  Annual accounts Annual accounts Annual accounts Year to date (AP7) 
			  Year 2010-11 Year 2011-12 Year 2012-13 Year 2013-14 
			 Consultancy 64,194 33,301 14,762 6,632 
		
	
	The cost of consultancy continues to fall year-on-year since 2010-11.

Corruption

Anas Sarwar: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if the resources dedicated to the combating bribery and corruption within the newly announced National Crime Agency represent a net increase in total spending by the Government on efforts to combat bribery and corruption.

James Brokenshire: holding answer 24 October 2013
	As set out in the Serious and Organised Crime Strategy published on 7 October, the National Crime Agency has a range of resources focused on combating bribery and corruption. Information on cross-Government spending on efforts to combat bribery and corruption is not held centrally.

Deportation

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people were removed from the UK between January 2004 and May 2013 by detainee custody officers working as overseas escorts who were not properly certified and accredited by her Department in accordance with the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999; and if she will make a statement.

Mark Harper: The information requested cannot be provided without collation and examination of individual records at disproportionate cost.
	Detainee Custody Officers who are employed as overseas escorts are accredited by Home Office Immigration Enforcement in accordance with Detention Services Order 4/2011 which is available at:
	http://www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/sitecontent/documents/policyandlaw/detention-services-orders/
	—detainee custody officer certification.
	In order to receive their accreditation, officers receive compulsory training on issues including welfare, first aid and control and restraint.

Discrimination

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  how many complaints of discrimination related to pregnancy or maternity have been lodged against employees of her Department or its executive agencies by (a) current employees and (b) prospective employees in each of the last five years; and how many such complaints resulted in disciplinary action;
	(2)  how many complaints of age discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of her Department or its executive agencies by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many of those complaints resulted in disciplinary action;
	(3)  how many complaints of racial discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of her Department or its executive agencies by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many such complaints resulted in disciplinary action;
	(4)  how many complaints of sexual discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of her Department or its executive agencies by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many such complaints resulted in disciplinary action;
	(5)  how many complaints of disability discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of her Department or its executive agencies by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many such complaints resulted in disciplinary action;
	(6)  how many complaints of homophobic or transphobic discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of her Department or its executive agencies by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many such complaints resulted in disciplinary action.

James Brokenshire: The information is not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Drugs: Imports

Stephen Phillips: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps her Department is taking to restrict the import of new psychoactive substances.

Norman Baker: In response to the Government's Drugs Strategy, the detection of new psychoactive substances is a high priority target for Border Force, alongside existing priorities in respect of cocaine and heroin. Border Force deploys its resources according to risk, using established intelligence and targeting techniques. Border Force also works closely with other agencies, including the Police.

Entry Clearances: Yemen

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) business and (b) visit visas were issued to Yemenis by UK overseas posts in (i) Abu Dhabi, (ii) Dubai and (iii) Cairo in each year since 2010.

Mark Harper: The visa section in Dubai was closed in 2009, so the following statistics only cover visas issued in Abu Dhabi and Cairo. The figures under ‘visit’ are for all visit visas issued, including business visit visas. The figures under ‘'visit—business’ are solely for business visit visas issued. The figures for 2013 are for visas issued from January to June 2013.
	
		
			 Visas issued in Abu Dhabi to Yemeni nationals 
			  Visit Visit—Business 
			 2010 284 23 
			 2011 400 38 
			 2012 406 41 
			 2013 338 63 
		
	
	
		
			 Visas issued in Cairo to Yemeni nationals 
			  Visit Visit—Business 
			 2010 50 18 
			 2011 157 43 
			 2012 159 46 
			 2013 77 15

Female Genital Mutilation

Gavin Shuker: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Bishop Auckland of 11 September 2013, Official Report, column 744W, on female genital mutilation, which (a) Government Minister and (b) civil servants were represented at the Home Office Ministerial Roundtable on female genital mutilation on 18 July 2013.

Norman Baker: holding answer 18 November 2013
	Ministers from the Home Office, Department for International Development and Department for Education attended the Roundtable on 18 July 2013. Also in attendance was the Director of Public Prosecutions, the Metropolitan Police Service Commander for Sexual Offences, Exploitation and Child Abuse Command, and the Chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group on female genital mutilation.
	Policy Officials were present from the Home Office, Department for International Development, Department for Education, Ministry of Justice and Department of Health. Representatives from the Crown Prosecution Service, Royal College of Midwives and the Metropolitan Police Service were also in attendance.
	The non-Government organisations represented were the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children, Equality Now and the Foundation for Women's Health Research and Development.

Human Trafficking

Robert Syms: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimates she has made of the number of victims of modern day slavery in (a) Dorset, (b) the South West and (c) the UK in each of the last three years.

James Brokenshire: The National Referral Mechanism (NRM) is a framework for identifying potential victims of human trafficking and ensuring they receive the appropriate protection and support.
	946 cases were referred in 2011 and 1,186 in 2012, of which 28 and 32 respectively were from the south-west. Data are not available for Dorset specifically, nor for the south-west prior to. 2011. Further information is available in the 2013 Human Trafficking Inter-Departmental Ministerial Group report available at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/251487/9794-TSO-HMG_Human_Trafficking.pdf

Immigration

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if she will arrange for the hon. Member for Harrow West to receive a reply to his letters of 5 September and 17 October 2013 to UK Visas and Immigration regarding Ms Suchita Dubla of Harrow.

Mark Harper: holding answer 18 November 2013
	UK Visas and Immigration wrote to the hon. Member on 20 November 2013.

Immigration Controls: Ports

Chris Bryant: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department on how many occasions passengers disembarking from ships originating (a) in the EEA and (b) outside the EEA have been allowed to enter the UK without having their passports checked at UK sea ports in (i) 2010, (ii) 2011, (iii) 2012 and (iv) 2013 to date.

Mark Harper: holding answer 8 October 2013
	Prior to 2012 Border Force risk assessed ships entering the UK, meeting only a proportion of them. Records were not kept of ships that were not checked. As such it is not possible to provide figures in response to the question for 2010 and 2011. Following the Secretary of State for the Home Department, my right hon. Friend the Member for Maidenhead (Mrs May), statement in the House on 7 November 2011 the practice was reformed in 2012. Since then Border Force has been working under a clear operational mandate and a requirement to record deviations from those processes.
	Immigration checks completed on passengers arriving in the UK on ships vary depending on the type of ship and the nature of its voyage. In line with the Border Force Operating Mandate, some passengers are therefore currently subject to checks that do not include the physical examination of their passports. The number of these passengers is not recorded.
	There were five occasions in 2012 where ship passengers were allowed to enter the UK without having their passports checked, despite this being mandated. In addition, there was a two month period in 2012 during which a single port failed to comply with the Operating Mandate. Cruise ships which were in transit for 24 hours or less were subject to security checks but there was no physical examination of passengers' passports. All passengers were checked against Home Office systems.
	Following this, all regions conducted a thorough assurance process to confirm that Border Force operational staff are fully compliant with the Operating Mandate. From the beginning of 2013 to the end of August 2013 there have been no recorded events where ferry or cruise ships were allowed to enter the UK without the appropriate checks.

Immigration officers

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many immigration officers were made redundant and then re-engaged in (a) 2010, (b) 2011, (c) 2012 and (d) 2013 to date.

Mark Harper: The Home Office has not made any immigration officers compulsorily redundant for the period 2010 to date.

Independent Monitoring Board

Graham Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if she will bring forward legislative proposals to make the Independent Monitor subject to the provisions of the Freedom of Information Act 2000.

James Brokenshire: The Independent Monitor of the Disclosure and Barring Service is excluded from Schedule 1 to the Freedom of Information Act 2000 and, as such, is exempt from freedom of information requests. There are no plans to have the Independent Monitor added to this Schedule to the Act.

Internet: Offences Against Children

William McCrea: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps he is taking to tackle the spread of child abuse content online.

Damian Green: The Government takes very seriously the spread of child abuse images online, and has taken action to tackle it.
	We have made real progress to block child abuse and other illegal content and to prevent offenders from accessing it. The UK has a clear process by which criminal images of child sexual abuse can be reported and for websites containing such images either to be removed completely or to be blocked by internet service providers. In 2012 the Internet Watch Foundation removed 9,550 child sexual abuse web pages worldwide.
	Internet search engines have made changes to their search functions. National Crime Agency testing of these new measures shows that they have been effective in making it harder to access child abuse images, videos or pathways.
	To take further action, Britain and the US have joined up to target child abuse online through a new UK-US taskforce to work with industry to counter online child sexual exploitation.
	In 2012, 255 individuals were found guilty of the principal offence of possessing prohibited images of children or of possessing indecent photographs.
	In the same year, 1,315 individuals were found guilty of the principal offence of taking, permitting to be taken, making, distributing or publishing indecent photographs of children.

Investigatory Powers Tribunal

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  on how many occasions in each year of the Investigatory Powers Tribunal's (IPT) existence a public body has made a representation to the IPT that it did not disclose information to a complainant; and whether each such representation was (a) upheld and (b) overruled;
	(2)  on how many occasions in each year of the Investigatory Powers Tribunal's (IPT) existence the Government has (a) objected to and (b) opposed an IPT proposal to hold an open hearing.

James Brokenshire: Neither the Government nor the Investigatory Powers Tribunal centrally record the information requested.
	Under rule 6 of the Tribunal Rules (Statutory Instrument 2000 No.2665) the Tribunal cannot disclose to a complainant anything that a public body has provided to the Tribunal, without the consent of the person who provided the information.

Investigatory Powers Tribunal

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the annual (a) budget and (b) total spend of the Investigatory Powers Tribunal has been in each year since its establishment.

James Brokenshire: For financial year 2013-14, the budget of the Investigatory Powers Tribunal and the secretariat that supports it is £296,558 and the total spend in the year to date is £177,296.37. The information sought in respect of previous years is not available as the budgets were not allocated in that way.

Overseas Students: Private Rented Housing

Roger Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what cost-benefit assessment she has made of her proposal in the Immigration Bill to require that landlords check the immigration status of international students before allowing them to rent accommodation; how she will ensure that legitimate students are not refused permission to rent accommodation because landlords are concerned about potential fines; and what steps she plans to take to ensure compliance with data protection regulations if unregulated landlords routinely collect citizenship information from overseas students.

Mark Harper: An impact assessment, including an analysis of the costs and benefits of the scheme has been published and is available in the House of Commons Library.
	The checks will be straightforward and quick for law-abiding landlords and tenants to comply with. Codes of Practice governing the scheme are being developed and landlords who comply with the Codes of Practice may have confidence that they will not incur a penalty. These Codes and wider guidance made available, will also remind landlords of their obligations to comply with data protection legislation.
	Purpose built student accommodation is exempted from the scheme. Private landlords of student accommodation will be able provisionally to agree tenancies with overseas applicants as they do now provided that original documents are verified once the student arrives in the UK.

Overseas Visitors: EU Nationals

Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what provisions are in place to prevent foreign nationals who have previously been served with an anti-social behaviour order within the UK from returning to the UK from another EU country.

Mark Harper: holding answer 14 October 2013
	Foreign Nationals arriving at our borders are checked against watch list data that contains information on criminals who have committed offences in the UK and abroad. These data are drawn from a variety of sources, including the police and other Government Departments. Anyone considered to present a serious threat to public safety may be prevented from entering the country. An antisocial behaviour order within the UK if part of a pattern of wider and more serious criminality in the UK and abroad would lead to a case by case consideration of a refusal of entry to the UK.

Police: Dogs

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what her policy is on the future of police working dogs who are to retire or are no longer required; what advice she has given to each police force authority on that matter; and if she will make a statement.

Damian Green: The retirement of police dogs is an operational decision for police forces.

Prisoners: Foreign Nationals

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many foreign nationals are in prison (a) in the UK and (b) on the Isle of Wight; what the nationality of such prisoners is; and how many foreign prisoners of each nationality (i) were automatically deported, (ii) were eligible for deportation but not deported and (iii) were not eligible for deportation since 2010.

Mark Harper: holding answer 18 November 2013
	The information on number of foreign nationals in prison in the UK and in the Isle of Wight can be found in the Offender Management Statistics Quarterly Bulletin in the following link in table 1.5 and 1.6.
	https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/253955/prison-population-tables-Q2-2013.xls
	It is our policy not to disclose the countries to which we remove or deport foreign national offenders as this could jeopardise our diplomatic relations.
	(i) The total number of foreign national offenders who were deported between January 2010 and September 2013 is 13,495. This is broken down as follows:
	
		
			  Total 
			 CY 2010 4,110 
			 CY 2011 3,375 
			 CY 2012 3,545 
			 CY 2013 (1)2,465 
			 (1) To September 2013 
		
	
	Total foreign national offenders (FNOs) removed by Criminal Casework (January 2010-September 2013) 13,495.
	(ii) A total of 3,210 foreign national offenders were eligible for deportation but not deported between January 2010 and September 2013. This is because of allowed appeals against deportation and human rights grounds.
	(iii) National Offender Management Service are requested to refer FNOs to the Home Office who meet the following criteria:
	For non-EEA nationals
	A custodial sentence of 12 months or more either in one sentence or as an aggregate of two or three sentences over a period of five years, or a custodial sentence of any length for a drug offence (other than possession).
	A court recommendation (only for those over 17 years of age)
	For EEA nationals
	A custodial sentence of 12 months or more for an offence involving drugs, violent or sexual crimes or a custodial sentence of 24 months or more for other offences.
	There is no central mechanism in place for recording the number of FNOs who have served a custodial sentence but do not meet the above criteria for deportation.
	These average figures are based on internal management information and are subject to change.

Staff

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for the 
	(1)  Home Department what proportion of employees in her Department is (a) white British and (b) black, Asian and from other minority ethnic groups, by each Civil Service pay grade;
	(2)  what proportion of employees in her Department are (a) female and (b) male, by each Civil Service pay grade.

James Brokenshire: The Home Office data showing the proportion of (a) female and (b) male staff by each Civil Service pay scale are shown in the table A.
	The Home Office data showing the proportion of (a) white British and (b) black, Asian and minority ethnic staff, by each civil service pay are shown in table B.
	
		
			 Table A: Gender table (end of October 2013) 
			 Percentage 
			 Gender 1. AA-AO 2. EO 3. HEO-SEO 4. G7-G6 5. SCS PB 1 6. SCS PB 2+ All SCS All staff total 
			 Female 59.96 49.92 47.86 44.41 35.00 23.81 32.42 51.84 
			 Male 40.04 50.08 52.14 55.59 65.00 76.19 67.58 48.16 
		
	
	
		
			 Table B: Ethnicity table (end of October 2013) 
			 Percentage 
			 Ethnicity target 1. AA-AO 2. EO 3. HEO-SEO 4. G7-G6 5. SCS PB 1 6. SCS PB 2+ All SCS All staff total 
			 Minority ethnic 26.12 25.93 18.90 11.19 7.03 0.00 5.33 23.21 
			 White 73.88 74.07 81.10 88.81 92.97 100.00 94.67 76.79 
			 Data source: Data View—the Home Office's single source of Office for National Statistics compliant monthly snapshot corporate Human Resources data. Extraction date: 1 November 2013. Organisational coverage: Figures include core Home Office (including the former UK Border Agency and Border Force) and the executive agencies; Her Majesty's Passport Office and National Fraud Authority. Employee coverage: Data are based on the headcount of all current, permanent and paid civil servants, who had made a positive declaration regarding disability. With the exception of the senior civil service, Government Departments have delegated pay and grading. For statistical purposes Departments are asked to map their grades to a common framework by responsibility level as per Office of National Statistics definitions. This table shows staff at their substantive responsibility level.

ATTORNEY-GENERAL

HowToCorp

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Attorney-General whether the Crown Prosecution Service was contacted by police for (a) pre-charge advice or (b) pre-charge decision on fraud allegations made against the company HowToCorp.

Oliver Heald: The Crown Prosecution Service has not been contacted by the police in relation to the HowToCorp allegation requesting either pre-charge advice or a pre-charge decision.

Offenders: Foreign Nationals

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Attorney-General how many non-UK nationals have been prosecuted by the Crown Prosecution Service in the last six months; and for what offences these prosecutions were brought.

Oliver Heald: The Crown Prosecution Service does not maintain centrally held data that would enable defendants to be identified as UK nationals or not. Such information could be obtained only through a manual search of records which would incur a disproportionate cost.

Public Sector: Procurement

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Attorney-General on how many occasions since 2006 the Serious Fraud Office has sought to have a company barred from public sector procurement contracts in the UK as a result of (a) bribery, (b) fraud, (c) money laundering and (d) terrorism.

Oliver Heald: The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) investigates and prosecutes cases of serious fraud, bribery and corruption. Where appropriate, it seeks a range of criminal and/or civil sanctions. Disbarment from public procurement contracts may be a consequence of successful prosecution but it is not a matter for the SFO. However, individuals have been banned from acting as company directors following SFO action in several cases.
	The Public Contracts Regulations (2006) set out criteria for rejection of economic operators, including for the reason that they have been convicted of fraud, bribery or money laundering.

NORTHERN IRELAND

Disabled Staff

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what proportion of employees in her Department have a physical or learning disability, by each Civil Service pay grade.

Theresa Villiers: As of October 2013, four employees in my Department, equal to 4.2% of staff, have declared that they have a disability. Given the small numbers involved, it would not be appropriate to provide any further breakdown as to do so would risk the identification of the individuals concerned.

Discrimination

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many complaints of discrimination related to pregnancy or maternity have been lodged against employees of her Department or its non-departmental public bodies by (a) current employees and (b) prospective employees in each of the last five years; and how many such complaints resulted in disciplinary action.

Theresa Villiers: Because of the devolution of policing and justice functions on 12 April 2010 and subsequent reconfigurations of the Northern Ireland Office, my Department does not hold figures for the periods prior to 2010; attempting to obtain this information would incur disproportionate cost. Since 12 April 2010, no complaints of discrimination related to pregnancy or maternity have been lodged against employees of my Department.
	My Department has two Executive non-departmental public bodies—the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission and the Parades Commission for Northern Ireland; and one advisory non-departmental public body—the Boundary Commission for Northern Ireland. As such bodies are independent of Government, the hon. Member may wish to write to the Commissions direct on these matters—contact details are set out as follows:
	
		
			 ALB Status Contact details 
			 Parades Commission Northern Ireland Executive NDPB info@paradescommission.org 
			 Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission Executive NDPB information@nihrc.org 
			 Boundary Commission for Northern Ireland Advisory NDPB bcni@belfast.org.uk

Discrimination

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many complaints of age discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of her Department or its non-departmental public bodies by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many of those complaints resulted in disciplinary action.

Theresa Villiers: Because of the devolution of policing and justice functions on 12 April 2010 and subsequent reconfigurations of the Northern Ireland Office, my Department does not hold figures for the periods prior to 2010; attempting to obtain this information would incur disproportionate cost. Since 12 April 2010, no complaints of age discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of my Department.
	My Department has two executive non-departmental public bodies—the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission and the Parades Commission for Northern Ireland; and one advisory non-departmental public body—the Boundary Commission for Northern Ireland. As such bodies are independent of Government, the hon. Member may wish to write to the Commissions direct on these matters—contact details are set out as follows:
	
		
			 ALB Status Contact details 
			 Parades Commission Northern Ireland Executive NDPB info@paradescommission.org 
			 Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission Executive NDPB information@nihrc.org 
		
	
	
		
			 Boundary Commission for Northern Ireland Advisory NDPB bcni@belfast.org.uk

Discrimination

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many complaints of racial discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of her Department by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many such complaints resulted in disciplinary action.

Theresa Villiers: Because of the devolution of policing and justice functions on 12 April 2010 and subsequent reconfigurations of the Northern Ireland Office, my Department does not hold figures for the periods prior to 2010; attempting to obtain this information would incur disproportionate cost. Since 12 April 2010, no complaints of racial discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of my Department.

Discrimination

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many complaints of sexual discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of her Department or its non-departmental public bodies by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many such complaints resulted in disciplinary action.

Theresa Villiers: Because of the devolution of policing and justice functions on 12 April 2010 and subsequent reconfigurations of the Northern Ireland Office, my Department does not hold figures for the periods prior to 2010; attempting to obtain this information would incur disproportionate cost. Since 12 April 2010, no complaints of sexual discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of my Department.
	My Department has two Executive non-departmental public bodies—the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission and the Parades Commission for Northern Ireland; and one advisory non-departmental public body—the Boundary Commission for Northern Ireland. As such bodies are independent of Government, the hon. Member may wish to write to the Commissions direct on these matters—contact details are set out in the following table:
	
		
			 ALB Status Contact details 
			 Parades Commission Northern Ireland Executive NDPB info@paradescommission.org 
			 Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission Executive NDPB information@nihrc.org 
			 Boundary Commission for Northern Ireland Advisory NDPB bcni@belfast.org.uk

Discrimination

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many complaints of disability discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of her Department and non-departmental public bodies by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many such complaints resulted in disciplinary action.

Theresa Villiers: Following the devolution of policing and justice functions on 12 April 2010 and subsequent reconfigurations of the Northern Ireland Office, my Department does not hold figures for the periods prior to 2010; attempting to obtain this information would incur disproportionate cost. Since 12 April 2010, no complaints of disability discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of my Department.
	My Department has two executive non-departmental public bodies—the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission and the Parades Commission for Northern Ireland; and one advisory non-departmental public body—the Boundary Commission for Northern Ireland. As such bodies are independent of Government, the hon. Member may wish to write to the Commissions direct on these matters—contact details are set out here:
	
		
			 ALB Status Contact details 
			 Parades Commission Northern Ireland Executive NDPB info@paradescommission.org 
			 Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission Executive NDPB information@nihrc.org 
			 Boundary Commission for Northern Ireland Advisory NDPB bcni@belfast.org.uk

Discrimination

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many complaints of homophobic or transphobic discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of her Department or its non-departmental public bodies by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many such complaints resulted in disciplinary action.

Theresa Villiers: Because of the devolution of policing and justice functions on 12 April 2010 and subsequent reconfigurations of the Northern Ireland Office, my Department does not hold figures for the periods prior to 2010; attempting to obtain this information would incur disproportionate cost. Since 12 April 2010, no complaints of homophobic or transphobic discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of my Department.
	My Department has two executive non-departmental public bodies—the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission and the Parades Commission for Northern Ireland; and one advisory non-departmental public body—the Boundary Commission for Northern Ireland. As such bodies are independent of Government, the hon. Member may wish to write to the Commissions direct on these matters—contact details are set out here:
	
		
			 ALB Status Contact details 
			 Parades Commission Northern Ireland Executive NDPB info@paradescommission.org 
			 Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission Executive NDPB information@nihrc.org 
			 Boundary Commission for Northern Ireland Advisory NDPB bcni@belfast.org.uk

Driver and Vehicle Agency: Coleraine

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what steps she has taken to retain jobs at the DVA centre in Coleraine; and what progress she has made in achieving that end.

Theresa Villiers: The decision on the future of the vehicle licensing work carried out at the DVA in Coleraine is the responsibility of the Under-Secretary of State for Transport, my hon. Friend the Member for Scarborough and Whitby (Mr Goodwill). I have discussed the matter with him and his predecessor at length on a number of occasions. I have made clear to him the concern felt about the potential loss of these posts and emphasised that it is very important to look at the wider economic impacts of any possible decision that would involve removing work from the DVA. My hon. Friend will also need to weigh efficiency issues for Department for Transport and the need to deal with the deficit as well as considering the best way to ensure that drivers in Northern Ireland can access the same level of electronic and web-based services to licence vehicles that is available in GB.

Employment Tribunals Service

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many claims at employment tribunals have been lodged against her Department on the grounds of pregnancy or maternity discrimination in each of the last five years; and how many such cases were found against her Department.

Theresa Villiers: No employment tribunals have been lodged against my Department on the grounds of pregnancy or maternity discrimination in the last five years.

Staff

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what proportion of employees in her Department are (a) female and (b) male, by each civil service pay grade.

Theresa Villiers: As at November 2013, the proportion of female and male employees in my Department, by pay grade, is as set out as follows. These figures do not take account of the civil servants seconded to my Department from the Northern Ireland Civil Service.
	
		
			 Percentage 
			  Female Male 
			 SCS 0 100 
			 Band A 54 46 
			 Band B 62 38 
			 Band C 48 52 
			 Band D 65 35 
			 Band E 62.5 37.5 
			 Band F 15 25

Staff

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what proportion of employees in her Department is (a) white British and (b) black, Asian and from other minority ethnic groups, by each Civil Service pay grade.

Theresa Villiers: As of October 2013, 30 employees in my Department, equal to 31.6% of staff, were recorded as white British. Two employees, equal to 2.1% of staff, were recorded as black, Asian or from other minority ethnic groups. Given the small numbers involved, it would not be appropriate to provide any further breakdown as to do so would risk the identification of the individuals concerned.

Terrorism

William McCrea: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland whether the Northern Ireland Justice Minister requested additional Police Service Northern Ireland officers to tackle dissident republicanism.

Theresa Villiers: The Minister for Justice and I meet regularly to discuss a range of issues, including those relating to security and policing. The Government has provided additional funding of £231 million to the PSNI until 2015-16 to support their efforts in tackling the threat from terrorism in Northern Ireland.

TRANSPORT

Cycling: Accidents

John Pugh: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what benchmarking statistics his Department holds on (a) traffic accidents and (b) related injuries in pedestrianised town centre areas where there are (i) discrete cycling lanes and (ii) co-mingling of cycles and pedestrians.

Robert Goodwill: The Department collects statistics on reported personal injury road accidents that occur on public highways. No information is collected on damage only accidents. The statistics collected are published in an annual report entitled ‘Reported Road Casualties Great Britain’, a copy of said publication has been deposited in the Libraries of the House. The publication is also available online at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/road-accidents-and-safety-statistics
	The publication contains a copy of the variables collected by the police (known as STATS19 data).
	Tables containing the strategic framework for road safety key outcome indicators are available at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/ras41-reported-casualties-rates
	The Department does not hold any information specifically on accidents in pedestrianised town centre areas.

Disabled Staff

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what proportion of employees in his Department have a physical or learning disability, by each civil service pay grade.

Stephen Hammond: The tables show the number and proportion of employees in post at 31 March 2013 who declared a disability within the Department and its six agencies. The Department does not have details on the type of disability. Staff on long-term leave (eg maternity leave, secondment etc) have not been included.
	
		
			 Number 
			  AA AO EO HEO FS SEO Grade 7 Grade 6 SCS PB1 SCS PB2,3 and 4 Total 
			 Non-disabled 1,190 3,570 4,390 1,473 65 1,014 686 273 108 20 12,789 
			 Disabled 285 558 441 143 7 81 44 12 4 0 1,575 
			 Unknown/prefer not to say 382 916 730 321 16 237 148 54 24 11 2,839 
			 Total 1,857 5,044 5,561 1,937 88 1,332 878 339 136 31 17,203 
		
	
	
		
			 Percentage 
			  AA AO EO HEO FS SEO Grade 7 Grade 6 SCS PB1 SCS PB2, 3 and 4 Total 
			 Non-Disabled 64 71 79 76 74 76 78 81 79 65 74 
			 Disabled 15 11 8 7 8 6 5 4 3 0 9 
			 Unknown/prefer not to say 21 18 13 17 18 18 17 16 18 35 17 
			 Total 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 100

Driving Tests

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the outcome was of his Department’s procurement process in respect of the driving theory test contract after 2014; what agreements were made with Pearson Vue and Learn Direct for that procurement; and what costs were incurred in the procurement process.

Robert Goodwill: The Driving Standards Agency (DSA) acting on behalf of the Government Procurement Service (GPS) has completed a competition to award a new framework agreement for the supply of computer-based testing for Government. The outcome was an award of the framework to Learn Direct Ltd on Friday 18 October 2013. The DSA and the Driver and Vehicle Agency Northern Ireland have agreed that the driving theory test, the largest contract under this framework, will be provided by Learn Direct Ltd from September 2016 and that Pearson Driving Assessments Ltd will continue to provide the driving theory test until that date. The cost of running the procurement process is estimated to have been £510,380. This covers pay costs of £350,865 and £159,515 non pay costs, which consists primarily of professional fees.

East Coast Railway Line

John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what discussions he has had with the Office of Rail Regulation about the 4.2 per cent cancellation rate set for the East Coast main line for the next five year control period.

Stephen Hammond: Regulatory targets have been set by the Office of Rail Regulation for Network Rail for punctuality on East Coast services by 2019, as part of the Office of Rail Regulation's Final Determination for the Control Period 2014-19. The Final Determination takes into account the outputs set out in the Secretary of State's rail investment strategy for the same period.
	Following its consultation with user groups and the rail industry on its Draft Determination, the Office of Rail Regulation concluded that it should lower the Public Performance Measure targets it had initially proposed for punctuality for long distance services, and toughen the corresponding targets for cancellations and significant lateness. This reflected customers' and operators' views that long-distance rail users are particularly disadvantaged by serious lateness and cancellations, and that in the Office of Rail Regulation's view it was sensible to rebalance targets to focus on these areas of particular concern. The revised targets are at least as challenging for Network Rail to deliver as the original Public Performance Measure targets.

East Coast Railway Line

John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether the higher level of cancellations and seriously late trains on the East Coast main line for the next five year control period is in accordance with the high level output specification.

Stephen Hammond: The target level set by the Office of Rail Regulation for cancellations and seriously late trains on the East Coast main line for the next five year control period is, taken together with targets for other operators' services, consistent with the Department's high level output specification.
	The target level for East Coast is more challenging then the level originally proposed in the Office of Rail Regulation's consultation with the industry.

Employment Tribunals Service

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  how many claims at employment tribunals have been lodged against his Department on the grounds of pregnancy or maternity discrimination in each of the last five years; and how many such cases were found against his Department;
	(2)  how many complaints of discrimination related to pregnancy or maternity have been lodged against employees of his Department or its executive agencies by (a) current employees and (b) prospective employees in each of the last five years; and how many such complaints resulted in disciplinary action;
	(3)  how many complaints of age discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of his Department or its executive agencies by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many of those complaints resulted in disciplinary action;
	(4)  how many complaints of racial discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of his Department or its executive agencies by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many such complaints resulted in disciplinary action;
	(5)  how many complaints of sexual discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of his Department or its executive agencies by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many such complaints resulted in disciplinary action;
	(6)  how many complaints of disability discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of his Department or its executive agencies by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many such complaints resulted in disciplinary action;
	(7)  how many complaints of homophobic or transphobic discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of his Department or its executive agencies by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many such complaints resulted in disciplinary action.

Stephen Hammond: The information requested is in the following table:
	
		
			 Description Total lodged per year (a) Disciplinary action taken 
			 Number of Employment tribunals that have been lodged against the Department on the grounds of pregnancy or maternity discrimination in each of the last five years (column 1) 2009-0 2010-0 2011-0 2012-0 2013-0 2009-0 2010-0 2011-0 2012-0 2013-0 
			 The number of cases which were found against the Department, (column 2)   
			 The number of complaints of discrimination related to pregnancy or maternity that have been lodged against employees of the Department and its executive agencies by (a) current employees and (b) prospective employees in each of the last five years (column 1) 2009-<5 2010-0 2011-0 2012-<5 2013-0 2009-0 2010-0 2011-0 2012-0 2013-0 
			 The number of complaints resulting in disciplinary action, (column 2) (b) See note 1. (b) See note 1 
			 The number of complaints of age discrimination or harassment that have been lodged against employees of the Department and its executive agencies by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years, (column 1) 2009-<5 2010-0 2011-0 2012-0 2013-<5 2009-0 2010-0 2011-0 2012-0 2013-0 
			 The number of those complaints which have resulted in disciplinary action, (column 2) (b) See note 2 (b) See note 2 
			 The number of complaints of racial discrimination or harassment which have been lodged against employees of the Department and its executive agencies by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years, (column 1) 2009-0 2010-<5 2011-<5 2012-6 2013-<5 2009-0 2010-0 2011-<5 2012-<5 2013-<5 
			 The number of these complaints which have resulted in disciplinary action, (column 2) (b) See note 2 (b) See note 2 
		
	
	
		
			 The number of complaints of sexual discrimination or harassment that have been lodged against employees of the Department and its executive agencies by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years, (column 1) 2009-<5 2010-<5 2011-<5 2012-<5 2013-<5 2009-0 2010-0 2011-0 2012-<5 2013-0 
			 The number of these complaints which have resulted in disciplinary action, (column 2) (b) See note 2 (b) See note 2 
			 The number of complaints of disability discrimination or harassment that have been lodged against employees of the Department and its executive agencies by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years, (column 1) 2009-<5 2010-<5 2011-<:5 2012-<5 2013-9 2009-0 2010-0 2011-0 2012-0 2013-0 
			 The number of these complaints which resulted in disciplinary action, (column 2) (b) See note 2 (b) See note 2 
			 The number of complaints of homophobic or transphobic discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of the Department and its executive agencies by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years, (column 1) 2009-0 2010-0 2011-<5 2012-0 2013-0 2009-0 2010-0 2011-0 2012-0 2013-0 
			 The number of these complaints which have resulted in disciplinary action, (column 2) (b) See note 2 (b) See note 2 
			 Notes: 1. All recruitment and resourcing for the Department for Transport and its Executive Agencies is undertaken by the Departmental Resourcing Group (DRG). DRG do not hold this data on prospective employees, and therefore we are unable to provide a reply. 2. There is no data centrally held on other individuals, only employees of the Department and its Executive Agencies. 3. All totals below five have been as <5 to avoid individual cases being identified. 
		
	
	The data underpinning this parliamentary question is not held centrally in all cases by the Department and its Executive Agencies for the time period of the last five years. The Department has sought to provide an answer where possible from the information it does hold. The data available is as follows:
	Department for Transport (Central)—data has only been, centrally held from March 2013 which has been provided.
	Marine and Coastguard Agency—No data centrally held for this period.
	Highways Agency—Data provided for the full period.
	Driving Standards Agency—data has only been centrally held from 2011 to 2013 which has been provided.
	Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency—No data centrally held.
	Vehicle Certification Agency—No data centrally held.
	Vehicle and Operator Services Agency—Data provided for the full period.

Pay Television

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether offices of (a) his Department and (b) its Executive agencies have access to Sky Sports or an equivalent premium sports television service; and what the cost to the public purse is in each case.

Stephen Hammond: The Department does not subscribe to Sky Sports or any other equivalent premium sports television service.

Railways: South West

Kate Hoey: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the answer of 4 November 2013, Official Report, column 45W, on railways: south west, for what reasons lease costs for rolling stock are considered to be commercially sensitive.

Stephen Hammond: The leasing costs for rolling stock are the result of negotiations between two private sector commercial entities, the train operating company and the rolling stock leasing company. Putting such information in the public sphere would give advantage to each party's competitors and hinder future negotiations between such commercial entities throughout the industry.

Speed Limits

John Pugh: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment he has made of the extent to which 20 mph zones in urban areas are (a) complied with by private motorists, buses and taxis and (b) enforced by police; and what statistics his Department collects on such matters.

Robert Goodwill: I have made no such assessment. Local traffic authorities are responsible for setting speed limits, including 20 mph zones and for ensuring that limits are appropriate for their roads. Speed limits should be evidence led and encourage self compliance. It is for local authorities to gather evidence on the effectiveness of 20 mph zones. Enforcement of 20 mph zones is a matter for relevant police forces and the Department does not collect statistics on this issue.
	However, the Department is planning an assessment of 20 mph limits and zones which will cover a range of issues including their effectiveness. I am also aware that the police are currently undertaking some research in 20 mph roads in order to design the most appropriate speed awareness course.

Staff

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what proportion of employees in his Department are (a) female and (b) male, by each Civil Service pay grade.

Stephen Hammond: The following tables show the number and proportion of female and male employees in post as of 31 March 2013.
	
		
			 Number 
			  AA AO EO HEO FS SEO Grade 7 Grade 6 SCS PB1 SCS PB2, 3 and 4 Total 
			 Male 691 2,199 3,985 1,140 48 932 616 248 96 24 9,979 
			 Female 1,166 2,845 1576 797 40 400 262 91 40 7 7,224 
			 Total 1,857 5,044 5,561 1,937 88 1,332 878 339 136 31 17,203 
		
	
	
		
			 Percentage 
			  AA AO EO HEO FS SEO Grade 7 Grade 6 SCSPB1 SCS PB2, 3 and 4 Total 
			 Male 37 44 72 59 55 70 70 73 71 77 58 
			 Female 63 56 28 41 45 30 30 27 29 23 42 
			 Total 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 100

Staff

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what proportion of employees in his Department is (a) white British and (b) black, Asian and from other minority ethnic groups, by each Civil Service pay grade.

Stephen Hammond: The following tables show the number and proportion of white, black, Asian, and employees from other minority ethnic groups in post in the Department for Transport on 31 March 2013. Staff on secondment and maternity leave are not included.
	
		
			 Number 
			  AA AO EO HEO FS SEO Grade 7 Grade 6 SCS PB1 SCS PB2, 3 and 4 Total 
			 White 1555 4134 4689 1526 55 1,073 662 269 107 22 1,4092 
			 BME 58 184 302 132 11 100 55 17 2 1 862 
			 Unknown/Prefer not to say 244 726 570 279 22 159 161 53 27 8 2,249 
			 Total 1,857 5,044 5,561 1,937 88 1,332 878 339 136 31 17,203 
		
	
	
		
			 Percentage 
			  AA AO EO HEO FS SEO Grade 7 Grade 6 SCS PB1 SCS PB2, 3 and 4 Total 
			 White 84 82 84 79 63 81 75 79 79 71 82 
			 BME 3 4 5 7 13 8 6 5 1 3 5 
			 Unknown/Prefer not to say 13 14 10 14 25 12 18 16 20 26 13 
			 Total 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 
		
	
	
		
			 Number 
			  AA AO EO HEO FS SEO Grade 7 Grade 6 SCS PB1 SCS PB2, 3 and 4 Total 
			 Asian 25 100 142 64 10 65 32 7 1 1 447 
			 Black 7 41 63 33 0 17 8 0 0 0 169 
			 Mixed 22 37 78 26 1 13 10 9 0 0 196 
			 Other 4 6 19 9 0 5 5 1 1 0 50 
			 White 1,555 4,134 4,689 1,526 55 1,073 662 269 107 22 14,092 
			 Unknown/Prefer not to say 244 726 570 279 22 159 161 53 27 8 2,249 
			 Total 1,857 5,044 5,561 1,937 88 1,332 878 339 136 31 17,203 
		
	
	
		
			 Percentage 
			  AA AO EO HEO FS SEO Grade 7 Grade 6 SCS PB1 SCS PB2, 3 and 4 Total 
			 Asian 1 2 3 3 11 5 4 2 1 3 3 
			 Black 0 1 1 2 0 1 1 0 0 0 1 
			 Mixed 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 3 0 0 1 
			 Other 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 
			 White 84 82 84 79 63 81 75 79 79 71 82 
			 Unknown/Prefer not to say 13 14 10 14 25 12 18 16 20 26 13 
			 Total 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 100

SCOTLAND

Disabled Staff

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what proportion of employees in his Department have a physical or learning disability, by each Civil Service pay grade.

David Mundell: The Scotland Office does not employ staff directly, all staff that join do so an assignment, secondment or from other Government bodies, mainly the Scottish Government and the Ministry of Justice.
	Information relating to staff that have a physical or learning disability would be retained by the parent bodies. However, to protect the identity and privacy of individual staff, data relating to fewer than five people is not disclosed in equal opportunities monitoring.

Discrimination

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many complaints of discrimination related to pregnancy or maternity have been lodged against employees of his Department by (a) current employees and (b) prospective employees in each of the last five years; and how many such complaints resulted in disciplinary action.

David Mundell: The Scotland Office has not had any complaints of discrimination related to pregnancy or maternity lodged against its employees by (a) current employees or (b) prospective employees in each of the last five years.

Discrimination

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many complaints of age discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of his Department by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many of those complaints resulted in disciplinary action.

David Mundell: The Scotland Office has not had any complaints of age discrimination or harassment lodged against its employees by (a) employees or (b) other individuals in each of the last five years.

Discrimination

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many complaints of racial discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of his Department by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many such complaints resulted in disciplinary action.

David Mundell: The Scotland Office has had no complaints of racial discrimination or harassment lodged against its employees by (a) employees or (b) other individuals, in each of the last five years.

Discrimination

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many complaints of sexual discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of his Department by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many such complaints resulted in disciplinary action.

David Mundell: The Scotland Office has not had any complaints of sexual discrimination or harassment lodged against its employees by (a) employees or (b) individuals in each of the last five years.

Discrimination

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many complaints of disability discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of his Department by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many such complaints resulted in disciplinary action.

David Mundell: The Scotland Office has not had any complaints of disability discrimination or harassment lodged against its employees by (a) employees or (b) other individuals in each of the last five years.

Discrimination

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many complaints of homophobic or transphobic discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of his Department by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many such complaints resulted in disciplinary action.

David Mundell: The Scotland Office has not had any complaints of homophobic or transphobic discrimination or harassment lodged against its employees by (a) employees or (b) other individuals in each of the last five years.

Employment Tribunals Service

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many claims at employment tribunals have been lodged against his Department on the grounds of pregnancy or maternity discrimination in each of the last five years; and how many such cases were found against his Department.

David Mundell: The Scotland Office has not had any employment tribunals lodged against it on the grounds of pregnancy or maternity discrimination in each of the last five years.

Pay Television

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland whether offices of his Department have access to Sky Sports or an equivalent premium sports television service; and what the cost to the public purse is in each case.

David Mundell: The Scotland Office does not pay for any premium television channels. The London office does have access to a package of television channels, which includes Sky Sports, provided by the Palace of Westminster Television Service. The Scotland Office is not charged for the different channels supplied.

Staff

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what proportion of employees in his Department are (a) female and (b) male, by each Civil Service pay grade.

David Mundell: The information requested is contained on page 29 of the Scotland Office and Office of the Advocate General for Scotland's Annual Report and Accounts 2012-13, a copy of which is held in the House Library or can be sourced through the website:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/annual-report-and-accounts-2012-13--2

Staff

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what proportion of employees in his Department is (a) white British and (b) black, Asian and from other minority ethnic groups, by each Civil Service pay grade.

David Mundell: The Scotland Office does not employ staff directly, all staff that join do so an assignment, secondment or loan from other Government bodies, mainly the Scottish Government and the Ministry of Justice.
	Information relating to ethnicity of staff would be retained by the parent bodies. To protect the identity and privacy of individual staff, data relating to fewer than five people is not disclosed in equal opportunities monitoring.

UK Membership of EU

Robert Syms: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what discussions (a) he and (b) his ministerial colleagues have had with their counterparts in the Scottish Government regarding an independent Scotland's membership of the EU.

David Mundell: Neither the Secretary of State for Scotland, the right hon. Member for Orkney and Shetland (Mr Carmichael), nor his ministerial colleagues, have held any discussions with their counterparts in the Scottish Government regarding an independent Scotland's membership of the EU.
	As outlined in ‘Scotland analysis; devolution and the implications of Scottish independence’, in the event of independence the remainder of the UK would be the same state as the existing UK, while Scotland would legally become an entirely new state. Therefore the UK's EU membership would continue automatically, while an independent Scotland would need to seek membership on new terms.
	Any treaty of accession that enabled an independent Scotland to become a member of the EU would require ratification from all 28 EU member states.

LEADER OF THE HOUSE

Flexible Working

Nick Gibb: To ask the Leader of the House how many officials in his Office make use of compressed hours arrangements as part of the Civil Service's flexible working hours scheme (a) above and (b) below director level.

Andrew Lansley: The Office of the Leader of the House of Commons is part of the Cabinet Office. Our answer will be included in the response by the Minister for the Cabinet Office, shortly.

ENVIRONMENT FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

Agriculture: China

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps his Department has taken to increase the level of agricultural exports to China.

George Eustice: UK food and drink exports to China are increasing rapidly. In the first eight months of this year exports were valued at £170 million, a 46% increase compared to the same period the previous year. China is now one of the UK's top 10 food and drink export markets. The Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, my right Friend the hon. Member for North Shropshire (Mr Paterson), recently led the largest ever UK delegation to the Food and Hotel China international trade fair in Shanghai. China is identified as a key market for food and drink and agri-tech exports in both the Food and Drink Exports Action Plan and the Agri-tech Strategy, which outline wide ranging support available to help UK exporters take advantage of the opportunities.
	The Government has recently concluded negotiations with the Chinese authorities to secure access for British pork, with exports increasing from £5 million for the first nine months of last year to £14 million for the same period this year. We are currently negotiating opening up market access for poultry meat, bovine and porcine semen, pigs trotters, pet food, event horses and trout to China, and beginning negotiations for ruminant meat.

Agriculture: Renewable Energy

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assistance his Department provides to farmers to assist them to learn about, install and utilise renewable energy.

George Eustice: The Government's Anaerobic Digestion (AD) loan fund, administered by the Waste and Resource Action Programme (WRAP), includes grants for business cases to help farmers decide if AD is right for them. In addition, continued Government financial support and action under our Anaerobic Digestion Strategy and Action Plan is leading to growing uptake of AD, including in the agriculture sector.
	The Government's Rural Community Energy Fund also provides support for rural communities in England in developing the pre-planning stages of community-scale renewable energy projects. All renewable technologies including AD are eligible for funding, and bids from local groups including farmers wishing to develop their thinking are welcome.

Birds: Conservation

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what areas in the UK are important roosting areas for Brent geese; and what steps he is taking to protect those locations for future generations.

George Eustice: The identification and protection of important roosting areas for geese is a devolved issue. In England there are a number of Special Protection Areas (SPAs) classified under the EU Wild Birds Directive (2009/147/EC) for the dark-bellied brent goose and the Svalbard light-bellied brent goose. Details can be found on the Joint Nature Conservation Committee website at:
	http://jncc.defra.gov.uk/page-1418
	A review of the UK terrestrial/coastal SPA network is currently being undertaken, which will report next year, following which further consideration will be given to the adequacy of the current network, including for brent geese.

Bovine Tuberculosis

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what discussions he has had with (a) the Northern Ireland Assembly and (b) the other devolved assemblies on the best way to control badgers and prevent bovine tuberculosis.

George Eustice: DEFRA Ministers and officials frequently meet their counterparts in all the devolved Administrations to discuss many matters, including bovine TB. DEFRA hosts an official level UK TB Liaison meeting, which is normally a monthly event.

Bovine Tuberculosis

Huw Irranca-Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether (a) the EU Directorate General for Health and Consumers, (b) the EU Directorate for Agriculture and Rural Development and (c) other European Commission officials have required a badger-culling programme to be a compulsory element of the UK tuberculosis eradication programme.

George Eustice: The UK is required by Council Directive 77/391/EEC to have an accelerated bovine TB eradication plan. In order to qualify for a financial contribution from the EU, the plan must satisfy minimum criteria in Council Directive 78/52/EEC. Neither directive states the explicit requirement for a badger cull.
	However, in a letter of 8 November 2011 to former Food and Farming Minister, my right hon. Friend the Member for South East Cambridgeshire (Sir James Paice), former Directorate General for Health and Consumers Commissioner John Dalli wrote:
	'As the UK considers that badgers are a key factor for spreading the disease, a policy decision concerning this issue must be taken without further delay and implemented rapidly'.
	Further details of the letter are available at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/239596/5618.pdf
	Additionally, the report of the bovine TB Sub-Group of the EU Task Force for Monitoring Animal Disease Eradication mission to the UK on 27-28 March 2012 concluded that:
	'It is...of utmost importance that there is a...commitment to long-term strategies to combat TB in badgers as well as in cattle...there is considerable evidence to support the removal of badgers in order to improve the TB status of both badgers and cattle.'
	A copy of the report is available at:
	http://ec.europa.eu/food/animal/diseases/docs/tb_subgroup_uk_2012_en.pdf

Carbon Emissions

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  pursuant to the answer of 10 October 2013, Official Report, column 361W, on carbon emissions, for what reasons his Department's guidance on air quality permits additional emissions where the effect is deemed to be negligible in areas where air quality management standards are being breached;
	(2)  pursuant to the answer of 10 October 2013, Official Report, column 361W, on carbon emissions, at what point the cumulative impact of additional emissions in areas where air quality standards are already being breached would lead to a prohibition on further such emissions.

Dan Rogerson: In order to allow new industrial installations to operate and contribute to the economy, DEFRA’s guidance on air quality permits additional emissions in areas where air quality management standards are being breached, where the effect is deemed to be negligible.
	If a European air quality standard is already being breached in a particular area, then a permit should not be issued to any new industrial installation that would cause anything beyond a negligible increase in the extent of the breach. However, if it is clear to the regulator that a combination of controls on the proposed installation and measures to reduce emissions from other sources will achieve compliance with the standard, then the installation may be permitted.
	Any significant additional contribution to a breach of a domestic air quality standard has to be considered on a case-by-case basis by the regulator, taking account of the costs and advantages of measures to reduce or prevent the breach.

Cattle

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps his Department is taking to reduce the incidence of liver fluke in cattle.

George Eustice: Liver fluke is not a notifiable or statutory controlled disease in either cattle or sheep so DEFRA takes no formal action in its control. Through our scanning surveillance for new and re-emerging diseases in farmed livestock we are aware that the very wet summer and winter of 2012 has led to an increased incidence of the disease both in areas where it is common and spread east to less usual areas. Vets from our Animal Health and Laboratories Agency, are providing their disease knowledge and expertise to industry groups to help them best tackle this issue.
	DEFRA is also providing funding to a collaborative research project worth £500,000 seeking to develop a better diagnostic test for liver fluke. This will help farmers take more targeted and effective action to manage the disease.

Common Agricultural Policy

Eilidh Whiteford: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  what communications his Department had with the European Commission about how to divide the uplift money in the CAP budget between the constituent parts of the UK; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  who his Department consulted before making the division of the uplift money in the CAP budget allotted to the constituent parts of the UK;
	(3)  what criteria the Government used to divide the uplift money in the CAP budget between the constituent parts of the UK.

George Eustice: Pillar 1 direct payments the UK's receipts will fall over the next budgetary period (2014-20). After having consulted the devolved Administrations in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, and accounting for the views of English stakeholders the Government concluded that the most appropriate way of allocating the cut in our direct payments was through an equal proportionate reduction in the budget of each region. Each region will therefore maintain their historic share of direct payments based on the 2012-13 regional ceilings.
	Similarly, the Government has decided that the change in our Pillar 2 allocation should also be distributed equally, based on the average historic shares of Pillar 2 between each region over 2007-13.
	To help inform our discussions on these matters, DEFRA officials and officials from the devolved Administrations met with the European Commission to confirm how the Commission had calculated the UK's overall budget for direct payments and rural development over 2014-20.

Common Agricultural Policy

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent representations he has received on the implementation of CAP reform in England.

George Eustice: On 31 October DEFRA launched a consultation on the Implementation of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) Reform in England. To date DEFRA has received approximately 3,300 responses.

Dogs: Imports

Jim Fitzpatrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment has been made of the risk of rabies entering the UK from Bulgaria or Romania through the import of puppies.

George Eustice: A comprehensive risk assessment carried out in 2011, prior to the UK's harmonisation with the European Union (EU) Pet Travel Scheme, concluded that the risk of an animal with rabies coming into the UK is very low and the risk of rabies being passed from a pet to a person is lower still. The details of this assessment are available at:
	http://www.defra.gov.uk/animal-diseases/a-z/rabies/
	This risk assessment incorporated both intra-EU and third country movements. Its conclusions are valid for animals moving under both the EU Pet Travel Scheme and commercial movements, as the risk mitigation measures are the same for both categories. We are constantly monitoring the prevalence of rabies, as well as other high impact diseases, around the world. If there is a significant change in the disease situation in any country we carry out a rapid risk assessment; these assessments are made available at:
	http://www.defra.gov.uk/animal-diseases/monitoring/poa/

Food: Origin Marking

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what discussions his Department has had at EU level to ensure that companies who produce British food can display the Union flag on their produce.

George Eustice: The EU Commission has published draft implementing rules relating to country of origin labelling for meat. We were concerned that an earlier draft might have inadvertently banned flags from meat labels and raised this issue with the Commission. The draft rules have been amended to clarify that such symbols are permitted.
	The draft rules have not yet been adopted and the UK is actively involved in negotiations.

Milk: Prices

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what help he has given to the dairy sector to maintain the price of milk; and what steps he is taking to liaise with major grocery companies to ensure that farmers receive a fair price for their produce.

George Eustice: DEFRA continues to support the UK dairy industry's work in a number of key areas. We have given our full support to the dairy industry's Code of Best Practice for Contractual Relations. The Code already covers in excess of 85% of raw milk production in the UK and is helping to improve contractual relationships between farmers and milk buyers.
	The Government is also providing £5 million worth of new funding under the Rural Economy Grant Scheme for high quality dairy projects which can help dairy farmers explore the potential in new markets through support for collaboration and marketing.
	DEFRA, in partnership with UKTI, has developed the Government's 'Exports Action Plan' for driving export growth across all farming, food, and drink sectors. The dairy industry has also established the first “Dairy Exports Forum” which is fully supported by DEFRA.
	With respect to contractual terms and conditions between retailers and their direct suppliers which include milk and dairy processors, the Government has introduced the Groceries Supply Code of Practice and appointed the Grocery Code Adjudicator, Christine Tacon, who will enforce the Groceries Supply Code of Practice to ensure that large retailers are not transferring excessive risk to their direct suppliers.

Nature Reserves: Enfield

Nick de Bois: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment he has made of the proposals of the Environment Agency to use rotenone in Turkey Brook, Enfield; and if he will place a moratorium on the use of that substance in the absence of a formal impact assessment.

George Eustice: Piscicides are currently used by the Environment Agency to deliver its strategic invasive non-native species management programmes to eradicate high risk invasive species from the aquatic environment and counter the threats they pose to habitats, species and valuable recreational fisheries nationwide.
	This contributes to the delivery of improvements to the aquatic environment under the Environment Agency's National Water Framework Directive programme (WFD). The WFD programme falls under the Strategic Environmental Assessment Regulations 2004 and has been screened accordingly.
	The proposal to use rotenone to eradicate topmouth gudgeon from Turkey Brook, North Enfield is an operational matter for the Environment Agency. The site planned for eradication is connected to locally important fisheries on the River Lea and the spread of topmouth gudgeon poses a significant threat to those fisheries if not controlled. Nonetheless, any such projects requiring the use of piscicides are reviewed as part of the operational assessment process and rigorously planned to ensure that impact to the wider environment is minimised and where appropriate mitigated.
	The use of rotenone is currently being reviewed under the EU Biocides Regulation; the outcome of this scientific assessment will determine its future usage across the EU. As such there are no current plans to place a moratorium on its use in England, and the Environment Agency will continue to be licensed to use it in exceptional circumstances.

Phytophthora Ramorum

Glyn Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what proportion of larch trees infected with phytophthora ramorum have been (a) treated, (b) felled, (c) not treated to date and (d) not felled to date.

Dan Rogerson: Forestry is a devolved issue. However, I can provide information on phytophthora ramorum with relation to larch trees in England. There is no known cure for this disease in trees so there is no treatment available. There will inevitably be some trees that have been infected and have not yet been identified so it is not possible to calculate the proportion of larch affected.
	The latest information from the Forestry Commission in England, which records information by woodland area and estimated timber volume, not tree numbers, is set out in the following table. This shows the area of woodland and volume of timber under Statutory Plant Health Notices (SPHN) requiring the trees to be felled, as well as the volume estimated of trees under Notice still to be felled.
	
		
			  Felling area under SPHN (hectares)(1) Total estimated volume (cubic metres) Total estimated volume not yet felled(cubic metres) 
			 2010 1,107.3 186,000 3,000 
			 2011 492.8 86,000 1,000 
			 2012 482.3 86,000 8,000 
			 2013 579.6 114,000 (2)108,000 
			 Total 2,662.0 472,000 120,000 
			 (1) All figures are as at 1 November 2013. (2 )Felling of trees placed under SPHN in 2013 is work in progress, therefore the figure of 108,000 is likely to be overstated. 
		
	
	The hon. Member may wish to contact Welsh Ministers to discuss the position in Wales.

Poultry: Animal Welfare

David Ward: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment his Department has made of compliance with Halal strictures of electric stunning of chickens.

George Eustice: It is for halal organisations to decide whether the stunning parameters in the European Union (EU) Regulation 1099/2009, on the protection of animals at the time of killing, comply with their strictures.

Reservoirs

Stephen Barclay: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate his Department has made of the potential effect on (a) the number of reservoirs built by landowners on private land and (b) water resilience capacity of introducing tax relief for capital costs of the construction of reservoirs.

Dan Rogerson: DEFRA has not estimated either the number of additional reservoirs that could be built or the potential water resilience capacity as a result of introducing tax relief for capital costs on the construction of reservoirs.

Reservoirs

Stephen Barclay: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what environmental benefits assessment his Department has undertaken in respect of the benefits of additional reservoirs being constructed by private landowners.

Dan Rogerson: DEFRA has not undertaken an assessment of the environmental benefits of additional reservoirs being constructed by private landowners.

Reservoirs

Stephen Barclay: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will publish his Department's most recent cost-benefit analysis of tax relief for the construction of reservoirs on private land; and when his Department last undertook such an analysis.

Dan Rogerson: We will be publishing a report in the new year called “Water for agriculture: collaborative approaches and on-farm storage”. The report will look at the costs and benefits of on-farm reservoirs and will help our understanding of the role tax relief may play on investment in reservoirs on private land. DEFRA presented an estimate of potential costs of capital allowances to HM Treasury on 12 March 2012, assuming no change from previous patterns of reservoir construction.

Sheep Meat

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps he is taking to ensure that there is availability of local lamb.

George Eustice: While eating locally produced food, including lamb, has become a major trend recently as consumers discover its superior quality and economic and environmental benefits, the Government cannot control its availability. This is dictated by commercial considerations and local initiatives.

Written Questions

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to the answers of 31 October 2013, Official Report, column 280W, on pesticides, columns 278-9W, on drinking water: contamination, and columns 282-4W, on pesticides: poisoning, if he will publish the direct weblinks to the information referred to in those answers as being available online.

Dan Rogerson: Pursuant to my answers of 7 November 2013, Official Report, columns 278-9W on drinking water: contamination, column 280W on pesticides and columns 282-4W on pesticides: poisoning, I have provided the direct web links to the information described below, together with the Hansard references.
	Hansard: columns 278-9W on drinking water contamination, the record of all prosecutions of water companies since 1990 for the offence of supplying water unfit for human consumption (s70 of the Water Industry Act 1991) in England and Wales can be found on the Drinking Water Inspectorate's website at:
	http://dwi.defra.gov.uk/press-media/incidents-and-prosecutions/prosecution-record.pdf
	Hansard: columns 280W pesticides, GB survey reports and data (and from 2010 UK data) are published on the Food and Environment Research Agency's website at:
	http://pusstats.fera.defra.gov.uk/index.cfm
	Hansard: columns 282-4W on pesticides: poisoning, data from the Health and Safety Executive's Pesticide Incidents Appraisal Panel (PIAP) report is published on the HSE's website at:
	http://www.hse.gov.uk/aboutus/index.htm
	The 2010/11 report, for example, is published on HSE's website at:
	http://www.hse.gov.uk/fod/pir1011.pdf
	The Human Health Enquiry and Incident Survey (HHEIS) reports on the requirement for authorisation holders for products to provide details of all human health related reports or enquiries involving their products. The results are published at:
	http://www.pesticides.gov.uk/guidance/industries/pesticides/topics/pesticide-approvals/enforcement/annual-questionnaire-on-the-possible-effects-of-pesticides-on-human-health.htm

WOMEN AND EQUALITIES

Long Term Unemployed People: Middlesbrough

Tom Blenkinsop: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities what assessment she has made of the reasons for the increase in long-term unemployment amongst women in Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland constituency between May 2010 and October 2013.

Esther McVey: I have been asked to reply 
	on behalf of the Department for Work and Pensions.
	Between May 2010 and May 2011 the number of women in Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland claiming jobseeker's allowance for more than 12 months fell from 125 to 115. From June 2011 to September 2012 the number rose to 345.
	This trend reflects that under the New Deal programme operating until June 2011, young people were not allowed to claim JSA continuously for more than a year and adults were not allowed to claim for more than two years. This held the number of long-term claimants below its true level, with some people who had been out of work for an extended period, having been moved onto a training allowance before returning to JSA, counted as short-term unemployed. The number of long-term JSA claimants rose because this no longer happened—individuals joining the Work programme continue to receive JSA until they find regular employment.
	In the last year the number of women with a long-term JSA claim in Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland has started to fall, reaching 305 in October 2013.

DEFENCE

Afghanistan

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the total cost of military action in Afghanistan has been to date.

Mark Francois: The net additional costs of military operations in Afghanistan are included in the Ministry of Defence's Annual Report and Accounts 2012-13 (HC 38), which are available in the Library of the House, and can also be found online at the following link:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/mod-annual-report-and-accounts-201213

Armed Forces Covenant

David Heath: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence which local authorities have not signed up to the community covenant.

Anna Soubry: holding answer 12 November 2013
	As of 12 November 2013, only 16 local authorities in Great Britain had not signed a community covenant. Of these, five have a planned signing date, and we are holding constructive discussions with the remainder.
	
		
			  Planned signing date 
			 West Lancashire Borough Council 14 November 2013 
			 Havant Borough Council 14 November 2013 
			 Leicester City Council 21 November 2013 
			 Bridgend County Borough Council 22 November 2013 
			 Lancashire County Council 29 November 2013 
			 Lancaster City Council — 
			 Bristol City Council — 
			 Isles of Scilly Council — 
			 Blaby District Council — 
			 Charnwood Borough Council — 
			 Harborough District Council — 
			 Hinckley and Bosworth Borough Council — 
			 North West Leicestershire District Council — 
			 Oadby and Wigston Borough Council — 
			 Blaenau Gwent County Borough Council — 
			 Fareham Borough Council —

Armed Forces: Suicide

Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many (a) serving armed forces personnel and (b) veterans committed suicide between 2002 and 2012; and if he will make a statement.

Anna Soubry: Every suicide is a tragedy and our thoughts remain with the families of all those who have sadly taken their own lives. However, suicide among members of the armed forces remains extremely rare and is generally lower than comparative rates in the civilian population. All three services have seen a declining trend in suicide rates since the 1990s.
	Between 1 January 2002 and 31 December 2012, there were 158 coroner-confirmed suicides or open verdict deaths among UK regular armed forces and deployed reservist personnel. Between 2007 and 2012 there were a further 20 deaths which are currently awaiting the outcome of a coroner's inquest where the mechanism of death suggests suicide.
	The Ministry of Defence does not hold information on the number of suicide and open verdict deaths among all veterans, but does hold information on the cause of death (including suicide) among veterans of the 1982 Falkland campaign, Gulf 1 conflict and a Gulf era-comparison group. Between 2002 and 2012 there were 188 post-service suicides and open verdict deaths among these groups. Although an analysis of the 2002-2012 figures has not been conducted, taken overall these groups have a statistically significantly lower risk of suicide and open verdict deaths compared to the UK population.

Army

Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many Army recruits enlisted in financial year 2012-13 aged 18 years old or above dropped out before completing their phase 2 training.

Anna Soubry: The number of Army recruits aged 18 or above who have dropped out before completing their phase 2 training during financial year (FY) 2012-13 is shown in the following table:
	
		
			 Outflow from 1 April 2012 to 30 September 2013, of the untrained inflow in FY 2012-13111 
			  Number 
			 Officer 60 
			 Other ranks 1,400 
			 Notes/caveats: 1. The figures are for trained regular army only and therefore exclude Gurkhas, full- time reserve service, mobilised reserves, TA and all other reserves, but includes those personnel that have transferred from Gurkha trained army manpower to UK trained adult population. 2. Where rounding has been used, totals and sub-totals have been rounded separately and so may not appear to be the sum of their parts. 3. Figures have been rounded to 10; numbers ending in ‘5’ have been rounded to the nearest multiple of 20 to prevent systematic bias,"—" denotes zero or rounded to zero. Information relates to number of flows rather than the number of individuals. Source: Defence Statistics (Army)

Army

Russell Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many and what proportion of soldiers promoted to each NCO rank of lance corporal and above in each of the last 10 years were aged under 18 at enlistment.

Anna Soubry: The following tables show the number and percentage of regular soldiers promoted to each non-commissioned officer rank of lance corporal and above. Information prior to 2007 is not held in the format requested.
	
		
			 Promoted to: 
			  Lance corporal Corporal Sergeant 
			  Under 18 on entry As % of all promotions to rank Under 18 on entry As % of all promotions to rank Under 18 on entry As % of all promotions to rank 
			 2007-08 2,140 44.3 1,300 39.6 1,040 42.2 
			 2008-09 1,870 42.4 1,380 39.2 1,140 41.8 
			 2009-10 1,840 40.9 1,450 38.9 970 39.8 
		
	
	
		
			 2010-11 1,510 36.0 1,090 37.8 770 37.0 
			 2011-12 1,420 32.8 1,220 38.4 880 38.8 
			 2012-13 1,320 32.7 1,170 36.8 940 40.1 
		
	
	
		
			 Promoted to: 
			  Staff sergeant Warrant officer 2 Warrant officer 1 
			  Under 18 on entry As % of all promotions to rank Under 18 on entry As % of all promotions to rank Under 18 on entry As % of all promotions to rank 
			 2007-08 860 47.5 740 58.4 380 61.9 
			 2008-09 810 44.0 730 53.7 360 63.6 
			 2009-10 710 43.6 590 51.9 340 59.3 
			 2010-11 560 42.8 420 47.9 270 59.9 
			 2011-12 610 39.6 470 42.3 270 57.4 
			 2012-13 650 41.8 410 42.9 260 56.6 
			 Notes: 1. Figures have been rounded to 10; numbers ending in "5" have been rounded to the nearest multiple of 20 to prevent systematic bias. Totals and sub-totals have been rounded separately and so may not appear to be the sum of their parts. 2. Unrounded figures are used in the calculation of percentages. Source: Defence Statistics (Army).

Burma

Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what discussions he has had with ethnic civil society organisations in Burma's conflict zones before offering training to the Burmese army.

Mark Francois: Educating the Tatmadaw (Burmese military) in their role within a democratic society is part of a wider HMG approach to security sector reform in Burma. Officials have met with members from NGOs who have interests in Burma, in order to ensure that their concerns about our engagement are listened to and in some cases, our approach has been tailored to support their views. During Daw Aung San Suu Kyi's visit to the Royal Military Academy, Sandhurst, she asked for our help in instilling in the Burmese military an understanding of the value—including to themselves—of being a professional and apolitical Army. Indeed, Daw Suu particularly liked the fact that the education that we intend to provide to the Burmese military will be jointly delivered by military and civilian academic staff. We will continue to review our engagement in Burma in the light of the Tatmadaw's evolving stance on reform.

Burma

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how Burmese soldiers who receive training from the UK are monitored after such training to ensure they do not commit human rights abuses.

Mark Francois: The Tatmadaw (Burmese military) hold 25% of the seats in the Burmese Parliament on an unelected basis; our programme to influence and educate them is a key part of HMG's contribution to the process of democratic reform in
	Burma.
	In January 2014 a team from the Defence Academy of the United Kingdom will travel to Burma to deliver a course called Managing Defence in a Wider Security Context. The academic team will provide education, to 30 members of the military and other government departments, that will explore the civil-military relationship in a democratic society, address topics such as governance, accountability and also human rights and the rule of law. The course does not offer the Tatmadaw any form of training that would enhance their combat capability.
	However active post-course monitoring of participants is not practicable although through long-term dialogue, we will enquire about their progress. It is our desire that the enduring lessons of this course will form a part of the process to ensure that the Tatmadaw continues on its road to reform.

Discrimination

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  how many complaints of discrimination related to pregnancy or maternity have been lodged against employees of his Department or its executive agencies by (a) current employees and (b) prospective employees in each of the last five years; and how many such complaints resulted in disciplinary action;
	(2)  how many complaints of age discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of his Department or its executive agencies by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many of those complaints resulted in disciplinary action;
	(3)  how many complaints of racial discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of his Department or its executive agencies by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many such complaints resulted in disciplinary action;
	(4)  how many complaints of sexual discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of his Department or its executive agencies by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many such complaints resulted in disciplinary action;
	(5)  how many complaints of disability discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of his Department or its executive agencies by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many such complaints resulted in disciplinary action;
	(6)  how many complaints of homophobic or transphobic discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of his Department or its executive agencies by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many such complaints resulted in disciplinary action.

Anna Soubry: This information is not held in the format requested and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	It is Ministry of Defence policy that discrimination and harassment, on any grounds, is totally unacceptable and will not be tolerated in the workplace. The Department has robust procedures in place for individuals who feel they are being discriminated against or harassed. In addition, the annual ‘Your Say’ staff survey highlights where advice on such issues can be found.

Employment Tribunals Service

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many claims at employment tribunals have been lodged against his Department on the grounds of pregnancy or maternity discrimination in each of the last five years; and how many such cases were found against his Department.

Anna Soubry: It is MOD policy that discrimination and harassment, on any grounds is totally unacceptable and will not be tolerated in the workplace.
	The Department has robust procedures in place for individuals who feel they are being discriminated against or harassed. In addition, the annual 'Your Say' Staff Survey highlights where advice on such issues can be found.
	The number of claims at employment tribunal lodged against the Department or its trading funds on the ground of pregnancy or maternity discrimination in each of the last five years, and the outcome, is shown in the following table.
	
		
			  Number of employment tribunal claims on grounds of pregnancy or maternity(1) Number of cases found against the Department 
			 2009 0 0 
			 2010 0 0 
			 2011 Fewer than five One withdrawn—no settlement 
			 2012 Fewer than five Some withdrawn—settled out of court One withdrawn—no settlement 
			 2013 up to 21 November 2013 Fewer than five Ongoing 
			 (1 )All figures have been rounded.

Germany

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what recent discussions he has had with his German counterpart regarding restrictions imposed on the support provided to the US defence communications network through use of UK military bases, facilities and personnel. [R]

Mark Francois: holding answer 22 November 2013
	No such discussions have taken place.

Members: Correspondence

Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 22 October 2013, Official Report, column 98W, on Afghanistan, when the Minister of State for the Armed Forces plans to write to the hon. Member for North Durham with the requested information.

Mark Francois: The information requested is being collated. I will write to the hon. Member in due course.

Military Intelligence

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 11 November 2013, Official Report, column 414W, on military intelligence, whether the Crossbow real time imagery analysis of Full Motion Video includes imagery from intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition and reconnaissance assets operated by the USA which are not under joint International Security Assistance Force command. [R]

Mark Francois: holding answer 22 November 2013
	No.

Ministry of Defence Police

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  on how many occasions he or his officials have met the Chairman of the Defence Police Federation in relation to his Department's Report on Ministry of Defence Police Pensions;
	(2)  whether he has any meetings planned with the Defence Police Federation Chairman before the publication of his Department's Report on Ministry of Defence Police Pensions.

Anna Soubry: There have been a number of meetings with the Defence Police Federation as part of the Ministry of Defence Police (MDP) Terms and Conditions of Service Review. These have included discussions regarding pensions. The MDP review team have an undertaking to meet with the Defence Police Federation informally at least every six weeks as part of that review.
	A copy of the Department's final report into the likely effect of section 10 of the Public Service Pensions Act 2013 on the MDP and Defence Fire and Rescue Services will be made available to the Defence Police Federation prior to publication.

RAF Croughton

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will place in the Library copies of any Memoranda of Understanding and other agreements regarding arrangements under which the UK Government makes RAF Croughton available for communications activities by the US. [R]

Mark Francois: holding answer 22 November 2013
	RAF Croughton is made available for use by the United States Visiting Forces under the terms of the NATO Status of Forces Agreement of 1951 (Cmd 9363) of January 1955, a copy of which is available in the Library of the House. This document is also available on the NATO website at:
	http://www.nato.int/cps/en/natolive/official_texts_17265.htm
	There are no separate arrangements regarding RAF Croughton’s role as a communications facility.

RAF Croughton

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  if he will introduce a moratorium on communications activities carried out by US officials at RAF Croughton and initiate a departmental review of the type and purpose of all communications activities undertaken at that base; [R]
	(2)  pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Leeds North East of 25 March 2013, Official Report, column 940W, on USA, if he will review the current legal framework and procedure in place for ensuring oversight of communications activities carried out at RAF Croughton; and if he will make a statement. [R]

Mark Francois: holding answer 22 November 2013
	The Ministry of Defence remains satisfied with the arrangement that is currently in place regarding the use of RAF Croughton by the US. The Department has no plans to review this arrangement nor review the activities undertaken by the US at the base.

RAF Police

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what partnership training takes place between RAF protection police and personnel from other nations.

Mark Francois: I have taken the term “RAF protection police” to mean RAF Police in this instance. Currently the RAF police conduct no partnership training with personnel from other nations.

RAF Police

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for International Development about possible assistance by the RAF protection police to his Department in its work overseas.

Mark Francois: I have taken the term “RAF protection police” to mean RAF police in this instance. No discussions have taken place.

RAF Police

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what joint training takes place between the RAF protection police and their equivalents in (a) the US, (b) Canada and (c) other NATO countries with regard to chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear training.

Mark Francois: I have taken the term “RAF protection police” to mean RAF Police in this instance. No joint chemical, biological, radiological or nuclear training takes place between the RAF police and their equivalents in the US, Canada or any other NATO country. The RAF Defence Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Wing undertakes joint training, but this unit does not include any member of the RAF police.

RAF Police

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the role of the RAF protection police will be after Operation Herrick in Afghanistan in 2015.

Mark Francois: We have yet to determine the precise nature and contribution of UK armed forces in Afghanistan post 2014, beyond our firm commitment to the Afghan National Army Officer Academy. Therefore, no decisions have yet been taken on the composition of our military capability, in Afghanistan in 2015.

RAF Police

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many recruits from Northern Ireland have joined the RAF protection police in each of the last five years.

Anna Soubry: I have taken the term “RAF protection police” to mean RAF police in this instance.
	The information is not held in the format requested. The following table gives details of those recruited through the recruitment offices in Northern Ireland in each Recruiting Year since 2008-09. This gives an indication of recruitment into the RAF Police in Northern Ireland. However, this information may not provide a comprehensive picture of individuals recruited from Northern Ireland as recruits can join the services at any Careers Office irrespective of where they reside.
	
		
			  Number recruited 
			 2008-09 (1)— 
			 2009-10 (1)— 
			 2010-11 (1)— 
			 2011-12 0 
			 2012-13 0 
			 (1) 5 or fewer. 
		
	
	In accordance with the Data Protection Act, and our obligations in relation to the protection of confidentiality when handling personal data, this data has been rounded.

RAF Police

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what training takes place between Afghan police and the RAF protection police in (a) the UK and (b) Afghanistan.

Mark Francois: I have taken the term “RAF protection police” to mean RAF police in this instance. No training currently takes place between Afghan police and RAF police personnel in either the UK or Afghanistan.
	However, the RAF police did conduct mentoring roles as part of a police advisory team in Afghanistan until the end of October 2013.

BUSINESS, INNOVATION AND SKILLS

Average Earnings

William Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will make an assessment of the effect of skills levels on weekly or monthly wages for persons in employment in each of the last three financial years.

Matthew Hancock: Information on the mean hourly wage of full-time employees aged 19 to 59/64 by level of highest qualification held in England (based on the Labour Force Survey) is published in a Supplementary Table to a Statistical First Release. This table is published at the following link:
	http://www.thedataservice.org.uk/NR/rdonlyres/F117C12B-B33D-4C5F-A273-F119E0F4E68A/0/LFS_supplementary_Mean_Hourly_Wage April13.xls
	BIS Research Paper numbers 45 and 53 provide the Department's latest estimates of the wage returns to higher qualifications and to intermediate and low-level vocational qualifications respectively. These reports are published at the following links:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/higher-education-qualifications-returns-and-benefits
	http://www.bis.gov.uk/assets/biscore/further-education-skills/docs/r/11-1282-returns-intermediate-and-low-level-vocational-qualifications

Business: EU Law

Caroline Nokes: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps his Department is taking to assist UK businesses seeking amendment of Commission Regulation 900/2008 to correct the anomalies in the test methodology as set out in article 2(3)b of that Regulation; and if he will make a statement.

George Eustice: I have been asked to reply 
	on behalf of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.
	Imports of some processed agricultural products incur a duty based on the levels of milk fat and whey protein they contain. European Commission Regulation 900/2008 lays down the methods of analysis for determining these levels. The methods have been challenged by importers of high protein whey products who suggest that they are not reliable when applied to their particular products.
	The Government is working with the European Commission to address the anomalies in the test method in Regulation 900/800 for high protein whey products where the analytical marker present from milk is used to measure milk fat levels and has been chemically modified during the production process. The Commission is looking to amend Regulation 900/08 to take account of these anomalies.

Charity Research Support Fund

Julie Elliott: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what recent discussions he has had with the Higher Education Funding Council for England on funding to be allocated to the Charity Research Support Fund in (a) 2014-15 and (b) 2015-16.

David Willetts: The Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, the right hon. Member for Twickenham (Vince Cable), has not had any recent discussions with the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) concerning the funding allocated by HEFCE towards the charity support element of Quality Related research funding.
	The Government recognise the significant contribution made by charitable funders of research. The charity support element of Quality Related research funding, provided by HEFCE, recognises the public benefit arising from research funded by charities. HEFCE was asked, as part of the science and research allocation for the spending review period 2011-15, to protect support for institutions leveraging funding from external sources, such as the charitable and business sectors. HEFCE has clearly signalled that this instruction will continue to guide its allocations through to 2014-15. It will of course be for the HEFCE board to determine the levels of future funding to deploy from within its overall research allocation.
	Decisions on the strategic priorities and levels of science and research funding for 2015-16 allocated to HEFCE, the Research Councils and others will be made in due course. I cannot however pre-empt subsequent decisions which are the responsibility of the HEFCE Board about detailed distribution of this funding.

Disabled Staff

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what proportion of employees in his Department have a physical or learning disability, by each Civil Service pay grade.

Jo Swinson: 69% of BIS staff have made a diversity declaration relating to disability. Of that 69%, 9% declared a disability of some type. The latest available data for core BIS is as follows:
	
		
			 Percentage 
			 Grade Yes No Prefer not to say 
			 AA 14 50 36 
			 AO 15.5 65.5 19 
			 EO 8 57 35 
			 HEO 6 58 36 
			 SEO 7 63 30 
			 Grade 7 4 64 32 
			 Grade 6 4 70 26 
			 SCS 4 64 32 
		
	
	The information supplied is dated 30 August, as BIS has transferred to a new system for collecting workforce information and more recent analysis is not yet available.
	Although we are not currently able to differentiate between physical or learning disabilities, the introduction of the new system will allow us to make this distinction in future. We do not mandate staff to complete a diversity declaration.
	We have recently begun a programme of activity and communication to encourage staff to declare their diversity information and we anticipate an improvement in the number of declarations by the end of December.

Employment Tribunals Service

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many claims at employment tribunals have been lodged against his Department on the grounds of pregnancy or maternity discrimination in each of the last five years; and how many such cases were found against his Department.

Jo Swinson: There have been no ET claims against the Department of Business, Innovation and Skills in the last five years relating to maternity or pregnancy.

EU External Trade

Stephen Gilbert: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how much compensation has been paid by the (a) UK and (b) EU under current investor-state dispute settlement agreements in each of the last five years.

Michael Fallon: The UK and EU have paid no compensation under the investor-state dispute settlement system during the last five years.

EU External Trade: USA

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the answer of 12 November 2013, Official Report, columns 597-8W, on EU external trade: USA, 
	(1)  who the members are of the strategy group of senior level officials from relevant departments and on which dates meetings of that group have been held; and if he will place in the Library copies of the minutes of those meetings;
	(2)  who the members are of the European Affairs Committee of the Cabinet.

Michael Fallon: The strategy group chaired by Tom Scholar is one of a number of processes for co-ordinating government policy on the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP). The senior officials that attend this group depend on the items under discussion but include directors general from key Departments such as Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, Foreign and Commonwealth Office, HM Treasury, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, Department of Energy and Climate Change, Department for Culture, Media and Sport, Home Office, Department of Health and Ministry of Justice.
	The group meets on a roughly monthly basis, although the exact frequency will depend on the pace of the TTIP negotiations. Since May it has met five times. As was the case under previous Administrations information relating to internal discussion, advice and policy development is not normally disclosed.
	The revised membership of the European Affairs Committee of the Cabinet will be announced shortly in a written ministerial statement.

Food: Manufacturing Industries

Iain Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills 
	(1)  how many officials in his Department work on policy relating to food and drink manufacturing;
	(2)  whether there is a dedicated team within his Department which deals with policy relating to food and drink manufacturing.

Michael Fallon: DEFRA is the lead Department in Whitehall responsible for Government relations with the UK food and drink manufacturing sector; BIS does not have a dedicated team of policy officials that deals in this area. BIS Ministers and staff have discussions with representatives of this industry when any departmental policies may affect the sector. In addition, the Department has a Relationship Management role with key food and drink companies, including participation in virtual teams as part of UKTI's Strategic Relationship Management programme.

Gas Masks

Jim Sheridan: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what assessment he has made of the risk of the inhalation of crocidolite asbestos through the use of Second World War gas masks in schools for demonstration purposes; and if he will make an estimate of the number of people involved in such demonstrations.

Michael Penning: I have been asked to reply 
	on behalf of the Department for Work and Pensions.
	The risk of inhalation of asbestos fibres from a Second World War gas mask during a demonstration is dependant on the condition of the mask and how it is demonstrated. The Health and Safety Executive's assessment is that the risk of inhaling any asbestos fibres during the demonstration of Second World War gas masks in good condition is low. Nevertheless, if the mask is damaged or deteriorating there is an increased risk that asbestos fibres will be released. As all these gas masks are old, and assessing the condition of the filter is not straightforward, the Health and Safety Executive's advice is that it is not appropriate for children or teachers to handle for demonstration purposes any Second World War gas mask that could contain asbestos.

Heart Diseases and Cancer

Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of funding for medical research on (a) cancers and (b) coronary heart disease.

David Willetts: The Government has not made a specific assessment of the adequacy of funding into cancers and coronary heart disease. National analyses of spending on health research in the UK are undertaken and published by the UK Clinical Research Collaboration. The latest edition of the UK Health Research Analysis is available from the following link:
	http://www.ukcrc.org/publications/reports/

ICT: Israel

Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills 
	(1)  what estimate he has made of the benefit of the UK-Israel Tech Hub to the economies of Israel and the UK;
	(2)  in which countries there are bilateral UK tech hubs.

Michael Fallon: The UK-Israel Tech Hub helps economic growth in both countries by partnering UK companies with the best of Israeli innovation. UK Trade & Investment (UKTI) is tracking the benefits of the hub through a range of metrics including innovation partnerships signed, strategic innovation benefit delivered to major UK companies, and inward investment leads generated by engaging Israeli companies. Benefits to date include:
	hundreds of introductions between UK and Israeli companies resulting in several commercial partnerships for UK companies, and many more in negotiation;
	help for Israeli tech companies to expand globally in partnership with the UK, including tens of inward investment leads, and active targets for UKTI;
	work with major UK corporations such as GlaxoSmithKline and Arup to develop strategic innovation partnerships in Israel; and
	increased awareness, and exchanging of best practice, among policy and business leaders, for instance through the visits to Israel of Joanna Shields, CEO, Tech City UK, and the Government Chief Technology Officer, Liam Maxwell.
	There is one further bilateral tech hub, which is the UK-Jordan Tech Hub. This hub was unveiled at a reception hosted by King Abdullah of Jordan on 20( )October 2013.

Industrial Disputes Independent Review

Ian Murray: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what progress has been made on setting up the Independent Review into Industrial Disputes to be chaired by Bruce Carr QC; and if he will make a statement.

Jo Swinson: Details of the review are being finalised and will be announced in due course. The intention is to have a balanced review involving employers and employee representatives.

Land Registry

David Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills to what depth the Land Registry recognises ownership of land under a property.

Michael Fallon: The ownership of land will normally extend to some extent both below and above the surface. How far it extends in this vertical way will vary from one “title” to another.
	Where it is sufficiently clear that the mines and minerals below the surface are included in, or are excluded from, a title which the registrar is registering for the first time, a note will be entered in the register to that effect. However, in many cases the title deeds do not make the position clear and so no such note is made.
	After the title has been registered it sometimes happens that the owner is able to produce evidence to show that the title to the surface does in fact extend to the mines and minerals. In these circumstances they can apply for a note to be entered in the register to the effect that the registered title includes the mines and minerals.
	Such notes might refer to the mines and minerals generally or be limited—for example, to those below a certain depth—depending on the information supplied to the registrar.

MentorsMe

Toby Perkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many people making contact with the MentorsMe website in each month since its inception have done so to register to become a (a) mentor and (b) mentee.

Matthew Hancock: We do not collect data on the number of people who visit MentorsMe to become a mentor or mentee. However, the following table provided by the British Bankers Association, who run MentorsMe, shows the number of people who visit the web pages on finding a mentor and becoming a mentor.
	Finding a Mentor
	Number of unique visitors landing on the url:
	http://mentorsme.co.uk/finding-a-mentor/results
	Becoming a Mentor
	Number of unique visitors landing on the url:
	http://mentorsme.co.uk/become-a-mentor/getting-into-mentoring
	
		
			 Number 
			  Finding a Mentor (unique page views) Becoming a Mentor (unique page views) 
			 2013   
			 October 2,530 525 
			 September 2,399 464 
			 August 2,417 507 
			 July 2,363 587 
			 June 1,955 530 
			 May 2,010 501 
			 April 2,726 648 
			 March 2,414 581 
			 February 2,708 671 
			 January 2,329 660 
			    
			 2012   
			 December 1,389 367 
			 November 2,133 567 
			 October 2,235 624 
			 September 2,454 660 
			 August 2,434 662 
			 July 5,385 1,026 
			 June 2,640 764 
			 May 4,065 1,065 
			 April 3,774 926 
			 March 3,470 1,050 
			 February 5,438 1,368 
			 January 3,909 1,022 
			    
			 2011   
			 December 1,683 478 
			 November 4,037 1,398 
			 October 2,654 933 
			 September 1,869 715 
			 August 3,444 1,203 
			 July 7,392 3,440

MentorsMe

Toby Perkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what the date, time and location has been of all the central meet-ups of mentors and mentees arranged through the MentorsMe programme to date.

Matthew Hancock: This information is not available.

New Businesses

Seema Malhotra: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many (a) men and (b) women have benefited from the Start Up loan scheme in each month since April 2011.

Matthew Hancock: I refer the hon. Member to my reply of 28 October 2013, Official Report, column 365W.

Pay Television

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills whether offices of (a) his Department and (b) its executive agencies have access to Sky Sports or an equivalent premium sports television service; and what the cost to the public purse is in each case.

Jo Swinson: The Department has no access to Sky Sports or an equivalent premium sports television service.
	I have approached the chief executives of the Department's executive agencies (Insolvency Service, Companies House, National Measurement Office, Intellectual Property Office, UK Space Agency, Ordnance Survey, Met Office, Land Registry and the Skills Funding Agency) and they will respond to the hon. Member directly.
	Letter from Dr Richard Judge, dated 20 November 2013
	The Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills has asked me to reply to your question, whether offices of (a) his Department and (b) its executive agencies have access to Sky Sports or an equivalent premium sports television service; and what the cost to the public purse is in each case.
	The Insolvency Service does not have access to Sky Sports or any other premium sports television service.
	Letter from Tim Moss, dated 20 November 2013
	I am replying on behalf of Companies House to your Parliamentary Question tabled 19 November 2013, UIN 176422 to the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills.
	Companies House does not subscribe to Sky Sports or any equivalent premium sports television service.
	Letter from Kim Thorneywork, dated 20 November 2013
	Thank you for your question in asking the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, whether offices of (a) his Department and (b) its executive agencies have access to Sky Sports or an equivalent premium sports television service; and what the cost to the public purse is in each case. (176422).
	Please be advised that the Agency does not have access to Sky Sports or an equivalent premium sports television service and therefore there is no cost to the public purse.
	Letter from Peter Mason, dated 21 November 2013
	I am responding in respect of the National Measurement Office (NMO), an executive agency of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS), to your Parliamentary Question tabled on 19 November 2013 asking whether offices of BIS and its executive agencies have access to Sky Sports or an equivalent premium sports television service.
	This Agency uses the single television installed in our offices only for the purpose of accessing news services and we do not subscribe to Sky Sports or any equivalent premium sports television service.
	Letter from Dr Vanessa Lawrence CB, dated 20 November 2013
	As Director General and Chief Executive of Ordnance Survey, I have been asked to respond to your Parliamentary Question asking the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, “whether offices of (a) his Department and (b) its executive agencies have access to Sky Sports or an equivalent premium sports television service; and what the cost to the public purse is in each case”.
	The answer is that Ordnance Survey does not subscribe to any television channels. All of the television services used by Ordnance Survey are free to air and thus the only cost incurred is that of the standard television licence.
	I hope this information is helpful.
	Letter from David Parker, dated 21 November 2013
	Thank you for your question addressed to the Secretary of State for the Department of Business, Innovation and Skills asking whether offices of (a) his Department and (b) its executive agencies have access to Sky Sports or an equivalent premium sports television service; and what the cost to the public purse is in each case.
	The UK Space Agency is an Executive Agency of the Department of Business, Innovation and Skills and its offices and premises are Polaris House, Swindon, One Victoria Street, London and the Electron Building, Harwell. None of these offices have access to Sky Sports or an equivalent premium sports television services.
	Letter from Ed Lester, dated 22 November 2013
	I write on behalf of Land Registry in response to Parliamentary Question 176422 tabled on 19 November 2013 which asked the following:
	To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, whether offices of (a) his Department and (b) its executive agencies have access to Sky Sports or an equivalent premium sports television service; and what the cost to the public purse is in each case.
	I can confirm that Land Registry has not purchased any premium sports TV packages.
	I hope that you find this information useful.
	Letter from John Alty, dated 25 November 2013
	I am responding in respect of the Intellectual Property Office to your Parliamentary Question tabled on 19 November 2013, to the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills
	The Intellectual Property Office (IPO) is an Executive Agency and Trading Fund of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills. The IPO does not provide access to Sky Sports or an equivalent premium sports television service.
	Letter from John Hirst, dated 25 November 2013
	I am replying on behalf of the Met Office to your Parliamentary Question tabled on 19 November 2013, UIN 176422, to the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills.
	The Met Office does not provide access to Sky Sports or any equivalent premium sports television service.
	I hope this helps.

Post Office

Ian Murray: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what funds from his department's budget have been allocated to Post Office Ltd in each of the next three years.

Jo Swinson: Funding of £330 million has been allocated for 2014-15 to modernise and support the post office network. An announcement on funding for the subsequent period will be made shortly.

School Milk

Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what recent assessment he has made of the role of the Nursery Milk Scheme in ensuring that children from low income families have access to a healthy diet.

Daniel Poulter: I have been asked to reply 
	on behalf of the Department of Health.
	No recent assessment has been made of the specific health benefits of the Nursery Milk Scheme for children from low income families. However Government guidelines, published by the Food Standards Agency, recommend that all healthy individuals should consume moderate amounts of milk and dairy products and national health service advice recognises the benefits of calcium in dairy foods for strong teeth and bones.
	This is why the Government has restated our commitment to maintaining free nursery milk as a universal benefit for all under-fives in nursery and child care settings within the June 2012 consultation document about modernising the Nursery Milk Scheme.

Staff

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what proportion of employees in his Department is (a) white British and (b) black, Asian and from other minority ethnic groups, by each civil service pay grade.

Jo Swinson: The latest available information on the ethnicity of BIS employees by pay grade is:
	
		
			 Percentage 
			  White BME Undeclared 
			 AA 36 18 46 
			 AO 35 23 42 
			 EO 29 20 51 
			 HEO 34 13 53 
			 SEO 40 9 50 
			 G7 39 7 54 
			 G6 48 5 47 
			 SCS 49 3 48 
		
	
	BIS encourages all staff to declare their diversity information so that we can ensure our culture and policies are inclusive and work equally well for everyone. However, this is not mandatory and some people simply prefer not to do so.

Travel

Chris Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what the cost of travel within the UK was for his Department in each year since 2010; and how much of this was spent on (a) hire cars, (b) helicopter hire, (c) hotel accommodation and (d) subsistence.

Jo Swinson: The cost of travel within the UK for the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (Core Department including UKTI) each year since 2010 is as follows:
	
		
			  £ 
			 2010/11 1,822,985 
			 2011/12 2,713,914 
			 2012/13 3,210,695 
			 2013/14 (1)1,644,401 
			 1 April to September. 
		
	
	Included within these figures the following was spent on:
	
		
			  Hire cars (£) 
			 2010/11 41,217 
			 2011/12 48,902 
			 2012/13 47,752 
			 2013/14 (1)27,326 
			 (1 )April to September 
		
	
	
		
			  Helicopter hire (£) 
			 2010/11 0 
			 2011/12 90 
		
	
	
		
			 2012/13 0 
			 2013/14 0 
		
	
	
		
			  Hotel Accommodation (£) 
			 2010/11 704,973 
			 2011/12 750,215 
			 2012/13 824,182 
			 2013/14 (1)374,174 
			 (1 )April to September 
		
	
	
		
			  Subsistence (£) 
			 2010/11 120,875 
			 2011/12 93,139 
			 2012/13 114,011 
			 2013/14 (1)58,055 
			 (1)April to September

JUSTICE

Crime Prevention

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice which early intervention crime-prevention schemes have received reduced funding from his Department since May 2010.

Norman Baker: holding answer 4 November 2013
	I have been asked to reply 
	on behalf of the Home Department.
	Funding streams provided by the Home Office to local areas for crime reduction and prevention have frequently been multi-purpose, with discretion given to local areas as to how to use funds to achieve desired outcomes. It is not possible therefore to disaggregate precise amounts spent on early intervention crime prevention initiatives over the period in question. At the same time, specific funding streams have been consolidated within the police main grant to enable Police and Crime Commissioners flexibility to allocate funding to locally identified policing and crime, priorities as appropriate. Alongside the main police grant, for 2013-14 a transitional Community Safety Fund of £90 million (which comprises some previously separate funding streams) has been established to assist Police and Crime Commissioners in funding local crime and policing projects. While this is not specifically designated for early intervention programmes some local schemes may have an early intervention element. It is intended that this fund will be incorporated into the police main grant from 2015/16. In addition, in 2013/14, £400,000 has been provided to fund Advocates for young people, and £700,000 provided to tackle knives, gangs and youth violence (neither of these schemes was running in May 2010).

Criminal Proceedings

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the average time taken is for each type of Class A criminal offence to reach court.

Shailesh Vara: Table 1 shows the average (mean) number of days from offence to first listing at court for all completed Class A criminal cases, England and Wales, annually 2010-012, quarterly Q2 2010 - Q2 2013.
	Caution should be taken when interpreting averages based on a small numbers of defendants. The relatively low frequency of Class A offences can lead then to be more susceptible to the impact of individual outliers (e.g. a single historic case or a particularly lengthy investigation).
	The time between an offence being committed and subsequently reaching court encompasses a number of distinct stages (e.g. reporting, investigation and charge) and associated criminal justice organisation. As such variations in duration are largely driven by the timing of initial reporting, the relative seriousness of the offence and the possible complexity of a case.
	
		
			 Average (mean) number of days taken from offence to first listing for completed criminal cases in England and Wales, annually 2010-12, quarterly Q2 2010—Q2 2013(1, 2, 3, 4) 
			   Murder(5) Manslaughter(6) 
			 Year Quarter Defendants Offence to charge or laying of information Charge or laying of information to first listing Defendants Offence to charge or laying of information Charge or laying of information to first listing 
			 2010 Q2-4(11) — 335 71 2 53 132 5 
			 2011 — 546 91 2 59 205 17 
			 2012 — 574 100 2 75 262 13 
			 2010 Q2 122 65 1 20 151 3 
			  Q3 98 76 2 15 171 6 
			  Q4 115 74 1 18 79 7 
			 2011 Q1 141 73 2 25 187 19 
			  Q2 103 150 1 6 102 13 
			  Q3 122 67 3 12 220 31 
			  Q4 180 87 2 16 259 5 
			 2012 Q1 117 38 1 13 227 9 
			  Q2 117 130 6 18 334 22 
			  Q3 180 131 1 27 290 13 
			  Q4 160 87 1 17 165 9 
			 2013 Q1 97 88 1 15 275 7 
			   165 75 3 7 316 13 
		
	
	
		
			   Infanticide(7) Child destruction(8) 
			 Year Quarter Defendants Offence to charge or laying of information Charge or laying of information to first listing Defendants Offence to charge or laying of information Charge or laying of information to first listing 
			 2010 Q2-4(11)  1 83 2 — — — 
			 2011  — — — 1 1 1 
			 2012  — — — 1 4 1 
			 2010 Q2 — — — — — — 
			  Q3 — — — — — — 
			  Q4 1 83 2 — — — 
			 2011 Q1 — — — — — — 
			  Q2 — — — — — — 
			  Q3 — — — — — — 
			  Q4 — — — 1 1 1 
			 2012 Q1 — — — — — — 
			  Q2 — — — — — — 
			  Q3 — — — — — — 
			  Q4 — — — 1 4 1 
			 2013 Q1 — — — — — — 
		
	
	
		
			   Soliciting to commit murder(9) Attempt to/cause explosion likely to endanger life or property(10) 
			 Year Quarter Defendants Offence to charge or laying of information Charge or laying of information to first listing Defendants Offence to charge or laying of information Charge or laying of information to first listing 
			 2010 Q2-4(11)  21 75 1 2 80 1 
			 2011  27 192 2 7 125 7 
			 2012  24 198 1 4 1 17 
			 2010 Q2 8 95 1 — — — 
			  Q3 3 43 1 1 158 0 
			  Q4 10 70 1 1 1 1 
		
	
	
		
			 2011 Q1 3 346 10 4 148 7 
			  Q2 12 65 1 2 142 8 
			  Q3 4 112 2 1 0 2 
			  Q4 8 367 1 — — — 
			 2012 Q1 3 188 1 — — — 
			  Q2 10 287 1 1 1 25 
			  Q3 6 187 1 2 2 22 
			  Q4 5 39 1 1 1 0 
			 2013 Q1 3 42 1 1 5 1 
			 “ __” = Nil (1) Excludes breaches and cases with an offence to completion time greater than 10 years. (2) Statistics are sourced from the CREST linked court data and included around 95% of completed cases. (3) Only one offence is counted for each defendant in the case. If two or more cases complete on the same day, the case with the longest duration is included. (4) Included all criminal cases which have received a verdict and concluded in the specified time period, in either the magistrates' courts or the Crown court. (5) “Murder” includes offences relating to victims aged under and over one year old under Common Law; Offences against the Person Act 1861, S.9; International Criminal Court Act 2001, SS.51 and 53. (6) “Manslaughter” includes offences under Common Law; Offences against the Person Act 1861, S.9. (7) “Infanticide” includes offences under Infanticide Act 1938, S.1(1). (8) “Child destruction” includes offences under Infant Life (Preservation) Act 1929, S.1. (9) “Soliciting to commit murder” relating to victims aged under and over one year old under Common Law; Offences against the Person Act 1861, S.4; International Criminal Court Act 2001, SS.51 and 53. (10) “Attempt to/cause explosion likely to endanger life or property” under Explosive Substances Act 1883, S.2; Explosive Substances Act 1883, S.3; Malicious Damage Act 1861, SS.35, 36, 47 and 48; Criminal Damage Act 1971, S.1(2). (11) TAR figures are only available from April 2010, so data for 2010 is presented above for Q2 to Q4 only. Source: Criminal Court Statistics, Justice Statistics Analytical Services (REF: PQ 172518)

Defamation Act 2013

Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice when the provisions of the Defamation Act 2013 not already in force will be implemented; and if he will make a statement. [R]

Shailesh Vara: As my right hon. Friend Lord McNally announced in the House of Lords on 19 November 2013, Official Report, column GC377, we intend to bring the Defamation Act 2013 into force on 1 January 2014.

Employment Tribunals Service

Ian Murray: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice in how many employment tribunal cases costs orders were issued in (a) 2010-11, (b) 2011-12, (c) 2012-13 and (d) 2013-14 to date.

Shailesh Vara: The number of cost orders that have been made by employment tribunals annually is published by the Ministry of Justice as Official Statistics. The most recent such statistical release is available here:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/employment-tribunal-and-employment-appeal-tribunal-statistics-gb

Employment Tribunals Service

Ian Murray: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice in how many cases an employment tribunal judge used case management powers in (a) 2010-11, (b) 2011-12, (c) 2012-13 and (d) 2013-14 to date.

Shailesh Vara: The Employment Tribunals (Constitution and Rules of Procedure) Regulations 2013 provide employment judges/tribunals with a range of case management powers including in respect of disclosure of documents; attendance at hearing; and strike out and deposit orders.
	HM Courts and Tribunal Service staff are not required to collate data about the exercise of judicial case management powers. To provide it, it would be necessary to retrieve it manually from hard copy files, orders and/or judgments. Accordingly, this information could be provided only at a disproportionate cost by manually checking hard copy tribunal files or judgments.

Employment Tribunals Service

Ian Murray: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many employment tribunal cases in each region were overlisted from April 2012 to April 2013.

Shailesh Vara: The listing and management of hearings in employment tribunals (including the taking of decisions about cancellation, postponement or adjournment of cases) is a judicial function.
	In accordance with judicial listing policy, it is possible that some cases listed for hearing on a particular day might not be reached during the course of that day. Such cases are then re-listed for an alternative day.
	HM Courts and Tribunals Service staff are not required to collate and record information about these cases. Those that do record relevant information do not report the data in a manner that can be collated and reported on centrally. Accordingly, it is not possible to provide the information requested without manually retrieving and collating the information from hard copy tribunal files or other records at disproportionate cost.

Energy

Ian Swales: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what progress he has made on improving the energy efficiency of his Department.

Shailesh Vara: The Ministry of Justice has a programme of initiatives to tackle its greenhouse gas emissions, including capital investment on energy conservation measures, energy surveys and optimising building management systems; working with facilities management providers to improve day to day building management, conducting behavioural change campaigns and ongoing maintenance.
	Details of the Ministry of Justice's performance are published in its Annual Report and Accounts.

Forest Bank Prison

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  what the turnover of education staff has been at HM Prison Forest Bank since it was opened;
	(2)  how many days of sick leave have been taken by education staff at HM Prison Forest Bank in each year since 2010;
	(3)  what steps have been taken at HM Prison Forest Bank to improve teaching standards and conditions since the most recent inspection by HM Chief Inspector of Prisons;
	(4)  what steps he is taking to ensure education staff employed at HM Prison Forest Bank are provided with (a) sufficient training and (b) opportunities for career development.

Jeremy Wright: The Ministry of Justice (MOJ) does not hold the detailed staffing information requested. HMP Forest Bank is managed by Sodexo Justice Services (Sodexo) and the education staff employed there are employees of Sodexo or other contracted organisations.
	Following the inspection by the HM Chief Inspector of Prisons, an action plan was prepared based on the areas identified for improvement. The prison has completed the actions identified by the inspection and is continuing to seek ways to improve the delivery of education.
	As the employer of teaching staff, Sodexo is responsible for providing them with training and career opportunities. Sodexo has stated its commitment to investing in its education staff, to ensure each member reaches his or her full potential.
	I understand that teaching staff at Forest Bank have full access to Sodexo's corporate learning and development opportunities, as well as to training from wider organisations, to enable them to deliver effective teaching.

Parole

Steve Rotheram: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many sex offenders currently awaiting parole are considered to be (a) high risk, (b) medium risk and (c) low risk; and how many sex offenders are enrolled in the multi-agency public protection arrangements system in prisons in England.

Jeremy Wright: Information on the risk levels of sex offenders currently awaiting parole could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. The required information is not held centrally on one system and would require matching together information from a number of different operational systems to identify the parole status and risk assessment of each offender. The data on parole status are held on the Public Protection Unit Database; the data on the risk of serious harm assessment are held on the Offender Assessment System (OASys) and further details required for accurate matching are held on the prison case management system (PNOM1S). Data from these systems are available centrally but they are not routinely matched. The information requested is held together on local individual case files but these are not available centrally.
	All sex offenders who have been convicted of a specified sexual offence and/or to whom the notification requirements under part 2 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 apply will be subject to supervision under Multi Agency Public Protection Arrangements following release from prison custody for as long as they are on licence or for the length of their notification requirement, whichever is longer.

Parole

Steve Rotheram: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many offenders who have been released by the Parole Board in each of the last five years have completed an accredited offender behaviour programme.

Jeremy Wright: In order to provide the number of offenders released by the Parole Board in each of the last five years who had completed an accredited offending behaviour programme, a manual check of all released offenders' files would be required as these data are not available centrally. That would mean that the information could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
	The completion of an accredited offending behaviour programme in itself is not a requirement for release. In deciding whether to direct the release of offenders who have completed their minimum period of imprisonment, the Parole Board will consider all the available evidence about an offender's current risk of harm. Thus, the Board will consider not only whether offenders have completed relevant targets on the sentence plan, but also their behaviour while in custody, current risk assessments and, finally, the proposed risk management plan for their release.

Pay

Stephen Barclay: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many successful prosecutions there have been for failure to comply with wage slip regulations in each of the last three years.

Jeremy Wright: The Ministry of Justice holds no record of prosecutions pertaining to wage slip regulations, as such it is not possible to provide the information requested.

Prisons and Probation

Nick de Bois: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what real-terms changes in spending on (a) prisons and (b) the Probation Service he plans will take place between 2012 and 2017.

Jeremy Wright: The following table provides a direct resource expenditure on public and private sector prisons for 2012-13 and draws a comparison with the budget figures for 2013-14. It also provides the outturn and budget figures across the two years on probation trusts.
	Please note that the allocated budgets for 2013-14 may be subject to change during the financial year. Due to changes in priorities, scope and accounting treatment the figures may not be directly comparable. The 2012-13 outturn on prisons has been adjusted to reflect this.
	
		
			  2012-13 Outturn (£ million) 2013-14 Budget (£ million) Variance (£ million) Variance (%) 
			 Prisons 2,196,121 2,015,116 -181,005 -8 
			 Probation 805,859 798,982 -6,877 -1 
		
	
	I am unable to provide information for future years as allocations to MOJ's business groups beyond 2013-14 have not been agreed and because settlements beyond spending round 2013 (2015-16) have yet to be negotiated.

Prisons: Security

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many incidents of lost keys in each prison have been reported in each month since May 2010.

Jeremy Wright: While the number of incidents of key loss reported by prison establishments is recorded centrally, it has not been possible to provide the data for this answer in the time available. I will write to the right hon. Member as soon as the information has been produced.

Probation

Richard Harrington: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how offenders will be moved between community rehabilitation companies and the new National Probation Service; and what steps he has taken to mitigate other potential problems that may arise from urgent reclassification of offender risk levels under the Transforming Rehabilitation proposals.

Jeremy Wright: Protecting the public is our top priority. Under our reforms, management of the offenders who pose the highest risk of serious harm, or who have committed the most serious offences, will be the responsibility of the National Probation Service (NPS), and management of medium and low risk offenders will be the responsibility of the Community Rehabilitation Companies (CRCs).
	CRCs will be required to refer a offender to the NPS if they believe the risk of serious harm is escalating to high. If a CRC refers a low or medium risk offender to the NPS, and the NPS decides that the risk of serious harm has escalated to high, the responsibility for the management of the case will transfer to the NPS. These case transfers will happen in a way that minimises the chance of destabilising the offender. For example, the CRC could continue to be involved in delivering interventions to the offender even though the case responsibility has moved.
	The NPS and CRCs will be expected to work closely together and we expect that partnership working would often be facilitated by co-location.

Roads: Accidents

Jim Fitzpatrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many prosecutions of drivers accused of causing the death of a cyclist have resulted in convictions in each of the last three years; and what sentence was handed down in each such case.

Jeremy Wright: The Government has made sure that significant penalties are available for those who cause death on the roads; the most serious offences of causing death by dangerous driving or causing death while under the influence of alcohol or drugs are punishable by up to 14 years imprisonment, causing death by careless driving is punishable by five years. There is no specific offence of causing the death of a cyclist so those who cause the death of a cyclist through dangerous or careless driving will be charged with the relevant offence.
	The Ministry of Justice Court Proceedings Database holds information on defendants proceeded against, found guilty and sentenced for criminal offences in England and Wales. This database holds information on offences provided by the statutes under which proceedings are brought but not the specific circumstances of each case. It is not possible to identify from these centrally held data whether or not the victim of any offence of causing death while driving for which a defendant was proceeded against was a cyclist. This detailed information may be held by the courts on individual case files which due to their size and complexity are not reported to Justice Statistics Analytical Services. The information requested can be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Young Offenders

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the average time was between arrest and sentencing for a young offender in each year since 2009-10.

Jeremy Wright: The average time from arrest to completion for youth criminal cases since 2010-11 can be viewed in the following table.
	Completed cases include those sentenced, acquitted and withdrawn. It is not possible from centrally collated data to identify separately those sentenced.
	The time between an offender being arrested and subsequently reaching completion in court encompasses a number of distinct stages, (for example investigation, charge and hearing at the court) and associated criminal justice organisations. Variations in duration are affected by the complexity and seriousness of a case both in terms of charging an offender and subsequent case management.
	
		
			 Table 1: Average number of days taken from arrest to completion for youth criminal cases in England and Wales, by financial years 2010-11 to 2012-13(1, 2, 3, 4) 
			  All completed criminal cases(5) 
			  Defendants Arrest to completion(6) 
			  Number Average(7) 
			 2010-11 97,357 45 
			 2011-12 80,411 45 
			 2012-13 60,757 46 
			 (1) Excludes breaches and cases with an offence to completion time greater than 10 years. (2) Statistics are sourced from the CREST linked court data and included around 95% of completed cases. (3) Only one offence is counted for each defendant in the case. If two or more cases complete on the same day, the case with the longest duration is included. (4) Included all criminal cases which have received a verdict and concluded in the specified time period, in either the magistrates' courts or the Crown court. (5) TAR figures are only available from April 2010. (6) Around 15% of defendant do not have an arrest date. (7) The median

Young Offenders

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what measures he has introduced to reduce young offending in the 100 most deprived UK communities.

Jeremy Wright: Preventing young people from offending is a Government priority. Considerable progress has been made in recent years in reducing the number of first time entrants to the criminal justice system, including through the work of youth offending teams. First time entrants to the youth justice system peaked in the 12 months ending June 2007 at 105,482 and has decreased by 76% since then to 25,332 in the 12 months ending June 2013.
	The Department and the Youth Justice Board (YJB) do not produce their own deprivation index. The Department for Communities and Local Government publishes a number of deprivation indices, one of which is the Index of Multiple Deprivation (IMD). This provides a comprehensive overall indicator of deprivation by geographical area and is widely used to identify the most deprived areas in England. The latest was published in 2011, for the year 2010. The index scores Lower Layer Super Output Areas (LSOA) and the table in the following link provides the details of the top 100 most deprived LSOAs:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/6872/1871524.xls
	The Youth Justice Board for England and Wales (YJB) monitors the youth justice system in England and Wales and identifies, promotes and disseminates good practice to youth justice practitioners.
	Youth offending teams (YOTs) are multi-disciplinary teams which deliver youth justice services in the local area. Each local authority or two or more local authorities acting together are required to establish a YOT to provide youth justice services to young people in their area. YOTs have the discretion to apply measures they consider will best address the needs of the young people in their area. In doing so they will be informed by the YJB's published advice and guidance including the information within the YJB's effective practice library. This contains examples of practice submitted to the YJB by the sector which are categorised according to the strength of the evidence to support their effectiveness.

Young Offenders: Human Trafficking

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice with reference to the answer of 18 November 2013, Official Report, column 818W, on young offenders, when he expects his Department to hold full offence data on the number of young people in custody for human trafficking offences.

Jeremy Wright: The Youth Justice Board for England and Wales (YJB) collects data on the offence for which young people in custody have been sentenced.
	Human trafficking was not recorded as a separate offence within the database used for data collection between 2008-09 and 2011-12. Any cases where the young person was in custody for human trafficking would be under the category “other” and cannot be extracted. A new database, which separately identifies human trafficking offences, has been in use since 2012-13 for data collection. Implementation issues have resulted in incomplete offence data and therefore it is not currently possible to answer reliably the question with regard to the number of young people in custody for human trafficking offences.
	It may be possible to provide information relating to the 2013-14 period after the end of the financial year, but we will need to assess the quality of the data when it is available before we can determine whether it is reliable to use.

Youth Justice Board

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the budget was of the Youth Justice Board in each year since 2009-10.

Jeremy Wright: The budget of the Youth Justice Board has reduced from £501 million in 2009-10 to £311 million in 2013-14, in line with the reduction in spending on the youth estate: the number of young people in custody has reduced from an average of 2,418 in 2009-10 to an average of l,561 in 2012-13.
	The following table shows the YJB's budget every year since 2009-10:
	
		
			 Fiscal resource (£ million) 
			 YJB budget 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 
			 MOJ/DFE 468 434 390 358 311 
			 Home Office 33 31 15 7 — 
			 Total 501 465 405 365 311 
		
	
	The YJB was previously sponsored jointly by the Ministry of Justice and the Department of Education (DFE), with both Departments providing funding. In 2010-11 sponsorship for the YJB transferred to the Ministry of Justice, with the Home Office continuing to contribute funding in that year and the following year.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

China

Chris Williamson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will raise the issue of forced organ harvesting (a) in general and (b) from Falun Gong practitioners in China with the Chinese government.

Hugo Swire: I refer the hon. Member to my previous answer dated 5 November 2013 to the hon. Member for Chesterfield (Toby Perkins), Official Report, column 107W.

Climate Change

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the contribution made by projects funded by the Prosperity Fund to tackling climate change in emerging economies.

Hugo Swire: Over half of the Prosperity Fund has been dedicated to tackling climate change in emerging economies. Notable examples include award-winning work on a software tool for comparing long-term energy choices which China and many other countries have adopted; the support for a new Climate Change Law in Mexico and the cooperation of the launch of new energy efficiency targets for industry in India. The Fund remains under regular review to ensure that it gives the best possible value for money for the British taxpayer.

Climate Change

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had on the future of the Commonwealth green capital fund; and if he will make a statement.

Hugo Swire: I believe that the hon. Lady is referring to the Green Climate Fund, which was discussed at the Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting, held earlier this month in Colombo. Although it is not a Commonwealth initiative, Heads recognised the importance of the Fund for helping developing countries to respond to climate change. We look forward to further progress towards the Fund's implementation at future meetings of the Green Climate Fund Board.

Climate Change

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what consideration he has given to expanding the number of target countries supported by funding from the Prosperity Fund.

Hugo Swire: The Prosperity Fund this year is worth £19.6 million and supports over 300 projects in 29 target countries. The qualifying countries are reviewed annually and the Fund remains open to outstanding projects from outside these countries.
	The Fund supports efforts to create the conditions for sustainable global growth, to ensure access to resources and to create more open global markets. It is a crucial part of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office's contribution to the Government's growth agenda and has given notable support to our economic objectives overseas—ranging from, for example, supporting research for the People's Bank of China on the internationalisation of its currency, the renminbi; supporting the Mexican Federal Commission on changes in competition rules, which saved £300 million of Mexican public money and opened up the telecommunications sector; to helping Colombia's President Santos to launch a high level anti-corruption reporting system, in line with OECD standards.

Disabled Staff

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what proportion of employees in his Department have a physical or learning disability, by each Civil Service pay grade.

Hugh Robertson: All Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) staff have been encouraged to provide personal diversity data—including on disability—to be held anonymously. Provision of this information is voluntary and to date this record is not completed by enough staff to provide an accurate overall picture of those with physical or learning disabilities. The FCO Diversity and Equality Report 2013 lists the percentage of employees who declare having a disability by grade and can be found at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/fco-diversity-and-equality-report-2013
	Please note that this report does not go into any detail about the disability.

Discrimination

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs 
	(1)  how many complaints of discrimination related to pregnancy or maternity have been lodged against employees of his Department or its Executive agencies by (a) current employees and (b) prospective employees in each of the last five years; and how many such complaints resulted in disciplinary action;
	(2)  how many complaints of age discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of his Department or its Executive agencies by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many of those complaints resulted in disciplinary action;
	(3)  how many complaints of racial discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of his Department or its Executive agencies by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many such complaints resulted in disciplinary action;
	(4)  how many complaints of sexual discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of his Department or its Executive agencies by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many such complaints resulted in disciplinary action;
	(5)  how many complaints of disability discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of his Department or its executive agencies by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many such complaints resulted in disciplinary action;
	(6)  how many complaints of homophobic or transphobic discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of his Department or its executive agencies by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many such complaints resulted in disciplinary action.

Hugh Robertson: Over the five years in question (2008-13) there have been no formal complaints from Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) UK based staff or the staff of its Executive agencies in relation to age, race, homophobic or transphobic discrimination or harassment. There have also been no formal complaints of discrimination in relation to pregnancy or maternity made by FCO UK-based staff, the staff of its Executive agencies or prospective employees, and only one employment tribunal case lodged that was subsequently withdrawn.
	The number of formal complaints relating to disability and sexual discrimination or harassment in each of these years is five or less. However in line with Cabinet Office guidance the FCO cannot disclose more detailed information on these cases, including whether they resulted in misconduct, for reasons of confidentiality, and to avoid the possibility of revealing the identities of individual staff.
	In addition to this, records for complaints made by employees against locally employed members of staff or by other individuals are not held centrally, and to obtain these figures would incur disproportionate costs.

Gibraltar

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent assessment he has made of the 2006 Cordoba Agreement and the commitment of each of the signatures to fulfil their commitments.

David Lidington: The 2006 Cordoba Agreement was a positive step forward in improving relations between the Governments of the United Kingdom, Gibraltar and Spain in respect of Gibraltar. We stand by the commitments made under the Cordoba Agreement, including on aviation, which is the key aspect of the agreement which Spain is now seeking to resile from.
	It is important that Gibraltar is included in all EU aviation legislation. We cannot accept a return to the pre-2006 Cordoba Agreement practice of suspending Gibraltar airport from EU aviation measures. We have raised this with the Spanish Government and the European Commission and we are continuing to seek a mutually acceptable solution.

Gibraltar: Spain

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many meetings he has had with (a) the Spanish Ambassador and (b) his Spanish counterpart on Spain's relations with Gibraltar in the last six months.

David Lidington: The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Richmond (Yorks) (Mr Hague), has not met the Spanish ambassador to discuss Gibraltar in the past six months. On the two occasions when the Spanish ambassador has been summoned to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office during this period, he has been seen by the Permanent or Acting Permanent Under-Secretary, in line with diplomatic protocol for the summoning of ambassadors. The Secretary of State called the Spanish Foreign Minister on 7 August to raise our serious concerns regarding the ongoing situation at the Gibraltar-Spain border. The Prime Minister and the Deputy Prime Minister and I also spoke to our Spanish counterparts during August, and the Prime Minister raised the issue again during a meeting with the Spanish Prime Minister at the G20 summit in September.

Gibraltar: Spain

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of proposals by the Spanish government to introduce a fee to cross the border to Gibraltar.

David Lidington: I refer the right hon. Member to my response of 29 October 2013, Official Report, column 413W.

Gibraltar: Spain

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps he is taking at (a) an EU, (b) an UN and (c) a bilateral level to reduce checks imposed by the Spanish government at its border with Gibraltar.

David Lidington: The Prime Minister, the Deputy Prime Minister, the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Richmond (Yorks) (Mr Hague), and I have all called our Spanish counterparts to protest in the strongest terms about delays at the Gibraltar-Spain border. We most recently made clear our concerns when we summoned the Spanish ambassador to the UK on 19 November and we protest formally to the Spanish Government about all delays experienced at the Gibraltar-Spain border.
	In August, the Prime Minister asked European Commission President Barroso to send a monitoring mission to Gibraltar-Spain border. We welcome the fact that the Commission sent a mission on 25 September and subsequently, on 15 November, made recommendations for the Spanish Government to improve the functioning of the border. We fully expect Spain to act on those recommendations without delay.
	The border between Spain and Gibraltar is an EU border governed by EU law, and we have therefore taken action primarily at a bilateral and EU level. We do not rule out raising this at the UN in future.

Gibraltar: Spain

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent assessment he has made of the European Commission's ruling on the legality of checks by Spanish border authorities at its border with Gibraltar.

David Lidington: We welcome the fact that the Commission has put Spain on notice and has made recommendations to the Spanish Government to improve the functioning of the border which, if implemented, would reduce delays. We expect the Spanish Government to act on these recommendations without delay.
	It is unsurprising that the European Commission was unable to conclude that EU law has been infringed: the border operated much more smoothly than normal during the Commission visit. This is not the same as confirmation that Spain has acted lawfully.
	We remain confident that Spain has acted—and continues to act—unlawfully, and we will continue to provide evidence of that to the European Commission.

Haiti

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent assessment he has made of (a) human rights and (b) representative democracy in Haiti; and if he will make a statement.

Hugo Swire: The UN Independent Expert issued a report on human rights in Haiti in February 2013. The British Government agrees with the recommendations in that report, particularly those around strengthening the rule of law, guaranteeing the economic and social rights of Haitian citizens and addressing gender-based violence. The UK. remains particularly concerned by the delay to local and senate elections and the implications for representative democracy in Haiti. I raised these concerns with the President and Foreign Minister of Haiti during my visit to open the new British embassy in Port-au-Prince in June and, more recently, in writing to the President of the Haitian Senate.

Middle East

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment his Department has made of the implications of the proposed Mount Scopus Slopes National Park for (a) the Palestinian neighbourhoods of Al-Issawiya and At-Tur and (b) the ongoing peace negotiations.

Hugh Robertson: Our officials in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem report that, if implemented, the Mount Scopus Slopes National Park plans would designate the eastern slopes of Mount Scopus—land which is in the most part privately owned by Palestinian residents of Issawiyeh and At-Tur—as a national park. The park would have serious implications for the bordering Palestinian neighbourhoods, which have no further space for natural growth in other directions.
	Recent settlement announcements have had a detrimental impact on trust between the parties and have led to the Palestinian negotiating team offering their resignations. During my recent visit to Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories, I made clear our concerns about these announcements and our opposition to settlements.
	We have raised our strong concerns over the Mount Scopus Slopes National Park plans with Israeli ministers and officials.

Pay Television

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether offices of (a) his Department and (b) its executive agencies have access to Sky Sports or an equivalent premium sports television service; and what the cost to the public purse is in each case.

David Lidington: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) and its executive agencies do not subscribe to Sky Sports or premium channels of any kind in the UK. This does not capture subscriptions sourced locally overseas as it would incur disproportionate cost to obtain this information.
	Sky Sports 1 is one of the eight channels provided via the Palace of Westminster feed and while some Departments in the FCO do have access to it; the FCO does not subscribe nor pay for it.

Staff

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what proportion of employees in his Department are (a) female and (b) male, by each civil service pay grade.

Hugh Robertson: The proportion of employees by gender and grade can be found in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office Diversity and Equality Report 2013, see:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/fco-diversity-and-equality-report-2013
	The specific statistics on this are set out as follows:
	
		
			 Percentage 
			 Grade Female Male 
			 Senior management 23 77 
			 D7 34 66 
		
	
	
		
			 D6 36 64 
			 C5 34 66 
			 C4 42 58 
			 B3 53 47 
			 A2 59 41 
			 Al 52 48 
			 Overall 43 57

Staff

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what proportion of employees in his Department is (a) white British and (b) black, Asian and from other minority ethnic groups, by each Civil Service pay grade.

Hugh Robertson: The proportion of employees by ethnicity and grade can be found in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office Diversity and Equality Report 2013:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/fco-diversity-and-equality-report-2013
	The specific statistics on this are set out as follows:
	
		
			 Grade Percentage of Declared Ethnic Minority 
			 Senior Management 4 
			 D7 6 
			 D6 4 
			 C5 8 
			 C4 8 
			 B3 17 
			 A2 30 
			 A1 21 
			 Overall 12

Syria

Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make an assessment of the number of Syrian refugees treated at the Galilee Hospital in the Golan Heights area of Israel.

Hugh Robertson: According to information from the Israeli National Security Council, approximately 300 Syrians have been treated in the Western Galilee Hospital. The hospital is situated in the Israeli town of Nahiriya, not in the Occupied Golan Heights.

Syria

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will investigate the use of frozen Syrian government assets for humanitarian aid for the population of that country.

Hugh Robertson: I refer the right hon. Member to the answer I gave on 25 November, Official Report, column 79W.

ENERGY AND CLIMATE CHANGE

Renewables Obligation

Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what the monetary value of renewable obligation certificates received by (a) Centrica plc, (b) EDF Energy plc, (c) E.ON, (d) Iberdrola, (e) RWE AG and (f) SSE plc was in each year from 2005 to date.

Michael Fallon: Renewable obligation certificates (ROCs) are issued to accredited generators by Ofgem on the basis of their reported renewable generation. Information on the number of ROCs issued to all accredited stations is published in the ROC register. This is available on Ofgem's website at:
	https://www.renewablesandchp.ofgem.gov.uk/
	It is not always clear from the register, however, who owns which generation assets, so the information requested could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	An estimate of the value of support for each generating station can be calculated by multiplying the number of ROCs issued by the value of the ROC. The nominal value of a ROC in any given year is equal to the buyout price (the amount a supplier must pay for every ROC they do not present to Ofgem in order to comply with their obligation) plus the recycle value (the amount re-distributed to suppliers from the buyout and late payment funds on a pro-rata basis depending on how many ROCs they presented to Ofgem) for that year. This information can be found in Ofgem's annual reports which are available on their website at:
	https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/environmental-programmes/renewables-obligation-ro
	The nominal value represents the maximum worth of a ROC to a generator but is not necessarily the amount paid by a supplier.

Wind Power

Ian Swales: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what his Department's recommended minimum distance between housing and a 140 metre onshore wind turbine is.

Gregory Barker: The National Planning Policy Framework expects local councils to design their policies to ensure that adverse impacts from renewable energy developments are addressed satisfactorily and makes clear that a planning application for renewable energy should be approved only if the impact is, or can be made, acceptable.
	To help implement the Framework, we published new planning practice guidance for renewable and low carbon energy. The guidance is clear that the need for renewable energy does not automatically override environmental protections and the planning concerns of local people.
	The guidance explains that local planning authorities should not rule out otherwise acceptable renewable energy developments through inflexible rules on buffer zones or separation distances. This is because other than when dealing with set back distances for safety, distance of itself does not necessarily determine whether the impact of a proposal is unacceptable. Distance plays a part, but so does the local context including factors such as topography, the local environment and nearby land uses. This is why it is important to think about in what circumstances proposals are likely to be acceptable and plan on this basis.

CHURCH COMMISSIONERS

Churches: North Yorkshire

Anne McIntosh: To ask the right hon. Member for Banbury, representing the Church Commissioners, what plans the Church Commissioners have to visit churches in North Yorkshire.

Tony Baldry: A number of the different parts of the Church Commissioners have made frequent visits to the North Yorkshire area in the last few years following the last full review in 2007. The Church Commissioners undertake these formal visits to two Diocese a year. There are mechanisms in place to visit a Diocese should this be required on a more frequent basis such as a number of similar issues facing several churches in one diocese.
	More informal meetings and visits take place throughout the year as part of the usual cycle of business. Such meetings usual involve among others the staff from the Pastoral and Closed Churches team and the Property and Investments Division, Rural Estates team and Strategic Land team.
	This year the following parts of the Church Commissioners have specifically visited the North Yorkshire area:
	The Rural Estates team and Strategic Land team have made a number of visits this year to York Diocese and to the wider estate in the North and West Yorkshire area.
	The Pastoral Committee have visited St Margaret’s High Bentham which is part of North Yorkshire but falls under the jurisdiction of Bradford Diocese.
	In recent years between 2007 and 2013 the Commercial team and Strategic Land team and Rural Estates team have also visited parts of the Diocese of Ripon and Leeds, Diocese of York , focusing on the areas of Hambleton, Selby and Kirklees, Leeds and Northallerton, Skipton and Ripon.
	The Church Commissioners will continue to visit and engage with the staff of the Church in the North Yorkshire area however, there are currently no plans in place for another full review of the York Diocese for a number of years.

WORK AND PENSIONS

British Steel: Pensions

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether his proposals on reducing widows' benefits include restrictions on the British Steel pension scheme.

Steve Webb: We have no plans to reduce existing widows' benefits paid by occupational pension schemes, and are not placing new restrictions on schemes in respect of such benefits.
	The Pensions Bill 2013, introduces the single tier state pension and under these proposals, from April 2016 there will no longer be an additional state pension to contract out of. This means, in future schemes that were contracted-out will not have to meet the minimum standard that currently applies to contracted-out schemes. Pension entitlement, including entitlement to survivors' pension, derived from employment before that date will be unaffected.
	We expect that, following the end of contracting out, these schemes will continue to provide survivors’ benefits as they have always tended to be more generous than mandated by the contracting-out requirements. If sponsoring employers or trustees choose to alter scheme benefits, only pension rights accrued after the change would be affected, and changes would be subject to any restriction in scheme rules concerning changes to scheme benefits.

Children: Maintenance

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what progress he has made on the implementation of his new child maintenance system; and if he will make a statement.

Steve Webb: The 2012 scheme opened as a pathfinder, on 10 December 2012, and the caseload has steadily expanded since then. On the 25 November 2013, the Government opened the 2012 scheme to all new applicants. We will no longer be accepting new applications to the 2003 statutory scheme.
	New applications will first need to go through a gateway conversation, delivered by the child maintenance options service. Child maintenance options provides information and support to help parents consider a family based arrangement, before turning to the statutory service.
	The 2012 scheme will act as a backstop for parents who cannot make their own family based arrangements. Experimental 2012 scheme statistics published today show that, for the months of August and September 2013, between 3,000 and 4,000 new applications a month have been handled. These statistics are available on the following link:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/260599/2012-child-maintenance-scheme.pdf

Housing Benefit

William Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will make an estimate of levels of expenditure by each local authority of their total allocation for 2013-14 for discretionary housing payments in the first six months of the current financial year.

Steve Webb: The Department for Work and Pensions requests that local authorities provide six monthly returns detailing their committed DHP expenditure.
	We are currently gathering this information from local authorities and conducting the relevant quality assurance process.
	This year, in addition to the original Government contribution, local authorities are able to bid for funding from a £20 million discretionary housing payment reserve fund. The scheme is open to bids until 3 February 2014.

Housing Benefit: Social Rented Housing

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people who will be affected by the under-occupancy penalty in (a) the Vale of Clwyd, (b) North Wales and (c) Wales are aged (i) 60 and over but under the qualifying age for state pension credit, (ii) under 60 and registered as a couple with children, (iii) under 60 and a lone parent, (iv) under 60 and registered as a couple without children and (v) under 60 and single.

Esther McVey: The information requested is not readily available by age. However, work is in progress to include these data as part of the information already available through StatXplore, see the following hyperlink:
	https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk
	Guidance on how to extract information from StatXplore can be found here:
	https://sw.stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/webapi/online-help/Stat-Xplore_User_Guide.htm

Innovation Fund

Sheila Gilmore: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much of his Department's £14 million Innovation Fund: Support for Separated Families has been allocated in the first two rounds of funding awards; how much has been paid out by his Department to organisations with whom it has now signed contracts for delivery of Innovation Fund projects; and what his Department's plans are for the balance remaining in the fund.

Steve Webb: Projects in rounds one and two of the Innovation Fund have been allocated worth £6.5 million and £3.4 million respectively. The Department has so far been invoiced for £585,000 in respect of projects in round one. Contracts have yet to be signed for round two. The Department plans for the remainder of the fund to cover spending on rounds one and two as well as evaluating the projects. The actual spend on these will depend on the performance of the projects, as payments to organisations are a mix of milestone payments and payments based on numbers of participants, and the outturn cost of evaluation.

Jobcentre Plus

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many of his Department's employees in Jobcentre Plus have undergone formal or informal poor performance procedures for not making enough sanctions referrals under the Work Programme.

Esther McVey: None because we do not issue targets for sanctions.

Jobcentre Plus

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 26 November 2013 to the hon. Member for Wentworth and Dearne, Official Report, column 153W, on telephone services, if he will publish a list of companies which made revenue from 0845 calls to Jobcentre Plus centres in 2012-13; and what amount was made by each company.

Esther McVey: Jobcentre Plus 0845 telephone numbers are provided to DWP by BT as part of the Integrated Communications Networks Services (ICONS) contract.
	DWP does not incur costs for calls to Jobcentre Plus 0845 telephone numbers as the customer making the call is charged by their respective service provider for the call. DWP cannot, therefore, provide details of revenue generated by private companies as a result of calls to Jobcentre Plus 0845 telephone numbers.

Long Term Unemployed People: Tyne and Wear

Nick Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what programmes his Department supports which focus on long-term unemployment in the Tyne and Wear travel to work area.

Esther McVey: The Work programme provides support, work experience and training for up to two years to help claimants that are long-term unemployed or face significant challenges, to find and stay in work.
	Claimants who do not find sustained work during their time on the Work programme receive intensive Jobcentre Plus support to build on their time on the Work programme. From April 2014, under ‘Help to Work’, this will be expanded to include community work placements.
	There are a number of local projects in the Tyne and Wear area that offer support to unemployed people, including the long-term unemployed that have completed the Work programme.

Mesothelioma

Stephen Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people have died from mesothelioma in (a) Jarrow constituency, (b) South Tyneside, (c) the North East and (d) the UK in each year since 1997.

Michael Penning: Mesothelioma data are not recorded at the constituency level.
	The following table shows the number of mesothelioma deaths for South Tyneside, the North East and for Great Britain in each year from 1997 to 2011, and the number of deaths registered in Northern Ireland for each year from the earliest data available in 2001 to 2011. 2011 is the most recent year for which the data is available.
	There is a small distinction between the figures for Northern Ireland and Great Britain; the figures for Northern Ireland are based on when a death from mesothelioma was registered, whereas the figures for Great Britain are for the year in which the person died of mesothelioma. This small distinction explains why figures are provided separately as Great Britain and Northern Ireland, rather than combined to produce a United Kingdom total.
	
		
			  1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 
			 South Tyneside 15 12 8 15 18 9 8 
			 North East 126 100 119 123 154 127 112 
			 Great Britain 1367 1541 1615 1633 1860 1867 1887 
			 Northern Ireland —(1) —(1) —(1) —(1) 58 42 49 
			 United kingdom —(1) —(1) —(1) —(1) 1918 1909 1936 
		
	
	
		
			  2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011(2) 
			 South Tyneside 15 10 10 8 19 16 18 21 
			 North East 134 160 118 137 167 159 180 160 
			 Great Britain 1978 2049 2060 2176 2265 2336 2360 2291 
			 Northern Ireland 54 40 50 36 40 42 35 52 
			 United Kingdom 2032 2089 2110 2212 2305 2378 2395 2343 
			 (1 )Not available. (2) Provisional. Source: GB data—Health and Safety Executive, British Mesothelioma Register, cases based on date of death. NI data—Health and Safety Executive for Northern Ireland cases based on date of registration.

Pay Television

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether offices of (a) his Department and (b) its executive agencies have access to Sky Sports or an equivalent premium sports television service; and what the cost to the public purse is in each case.

Esther McVey: The DWP does not subscribe to Sky Sports. A small number of offices have access to the parliamentary annunciator service. The annunciator service gives information about parliamentary proceedings, including live feeds from the Commons and Lords Chambers and Westminster Hall, on screens throughout the parliamentary estate. The feed received by DWP includes the same channels, including Sky Sports, as are provided in the Palace of Westminster. There is no extra cost to the DWP.

Publications

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will (a) make available online and (b) place a copy in the Library of his Department's (i) Labour Market Decision Makers Procedural Guide, (ii) Jobseeker's Allowance Procedural Guidance, (iii) Get Britain Working Guide, (iv) Labour Market Conditions Guide and (v) Decision Maker's Guide.

Esther McVey: Government information is now published on the GOV.UK website. GOV.UK is run by Government Digital Services (GDS), who are part of Cabinet Office. We can publish Information on GOV.UK if there is a statutory requirement or a clear user need.
	The Decision Makers Guide is already published on GOV.UK
	https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/decision-makers-guide-staff-guide
	We will investigate whether these other guides can also be published and will pursue this with GDS.
	I will place a copy of these guidance products in the Library of both Houses.

Social Security Benefits

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment he has made of whether everyone in receipt of jobseeker's allowance or employment support allowance who is sanctioned is now given a written statement explaining the reason for the sanction; and if he will make a statement.

Esther McVey: Jobseeker's allowance and employment support allowance decision notices provide reasons for decisions, but claimants also have the right under the Social Security Act 1998 to request a fuller statement of reasons.

Social Security Benefits: Greater Manchester

Barbara Keeley: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many benefit sanctions were applied to claimants in Worsley and Eccles South constituency in each of the last five years.

Esther McVey: The available information on how many benefit sanctions were applied to claimants in Worsley and Eccles South constituency in each of the last five years is shown in the following table.
	
		
			 Number of benefit sanctions and disallowances applied by year of decision and benefit, Worsley and Eccles South parliamentary constituency: 1 January 2009 to 30 June 2013 
			   Benefit 
			 Year of decision Total Jobseeker's allowance (JSA) Employment and support allowance (ESA) Income support for lone parents (ISLP) 
			 2009 1,110 810 40 260 
			 2010 1,620 1,250 80 280 
			 2011 1,460 1,210 10 240 
			 2012 1,240 1,000 30 210 
			 2013 1,110 990 40 80 
			 Notes: 1. Figures are rounded to the nearest ten. Totals may not sum due to rounding. "—" denotes nil or negligible. 2. The number of benefit sanctions applied is the number of sanction or disallowance referrals where the decision was found against the claimant. 3. Figures show the year in which the decision to apply a sanction was made. JSA figures for 2012 do not include sanctions applied between 1 June and 21 October, inclusive, which are not readily available by parliamentary constituency. Figures for 2013 include sanctions applied up to and including 30 June which is the latest data available. 4. New regulations introduced a new revised sanctions regime for JSA and ESA claimants from 22 October and 3 December 2012 respectively. Sources: JSA and ESA—DWP Information, Governance and Security Directorate: Sanctions and Disallowance Decisions Statistics Database. ISLP—DWP Income Support Computer System. 
		
	
	The information requested for JSA sanctions applied between 1 June 2012 and 21 October 2012 is not readily available by parliamentary constituency and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Unemployment: Young People

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions with reference to the EU Permanent Representatives Council document 10660/1/13 REV1, published on 19 June 2013, what assessment he has made of the recommendation that the UK could build on the current Youth Contract to implement a youth guarantee and address the problem of youth unemployment and those not in education, employment or training.

Esther McVey: The UK values the European semester as a mechanism to share knowledge and best practice between member states. Country specific recommendations form a valuable part of the process, encouraging and supporting member states to make necessary reforms.
	The Government broadly agrees with the European Council's recommendation 3 for the UK—that tackling youth unemployment should be a priority. That is why the Government implemented the Youth Contract in April 2012, providing almost £1 billion of additional support for young people over three years. And we have seen positive progress—the jobseeker's allowance claimant count for 18 to 24-year-olds has fallen in each of the last 17 months.
	However, while the Government support the aims of the EU's Youth Guarantee and agree with much of the supporting guidance, it does not believe a four month guarantee is right for the UK. Over 80% of 18 to 24-year-olds flow off of jobseeker’s allowance within six months. Implementing a four month guarantee would mean spending money on many young people who would move off benefits anyway so wouldn't be cost effective.

Work Programme

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what proportion of those claimants who have completed the Work Programme are still claiming benefits.

Esther McVey: Statistics are not held on the proportion of claimants who have completed the Work programme that are still claiming benefits.
	The latest statistical release (which covers the period 1 June 2011 to 30 June 2013) does show that of the 1.31 million claimants who have been referred to the Work programme 54,000 claimants returned to Jobcentre Plus after completing 104 weeks on the scheme.

Work Programme

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 11 November 2013, Official Report, colum 501W, on work programme, how many Work Programme providers have been required to rectify shortcomings identified in the monthly survey of claimants.

Esther McVey: Claimant data collected by the Department forms part of a suite of information used in Work Programme provider contract performance reviews to identify opportunities to improve customer services.

Work Programme

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 11 November 2013, Official Report, column 521W, on the Work programme, how many customer complaints have been submitted to each Work programme prime provider in each month since that programmer began work.

Esther McVey: The Department does not hold information on the number of complaints received by Work programme providers. Records of any complaints they have received are kept by providers.
	We require providers to work directly with individuals to resolve complaints about their service. If the individual is not happy with the final response from that provider they can take their complaint directly to the Independent Case Examiner's Service; an independent complaints review service which investigates complaints about the Department for Work and Pensions and its providers.

DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER

British Constitution

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what further plans he has for constitutional reform.

Greg Clark: The Government continues to work on constitutional reform, particularly devolving more powers from Whitehall to our cities and regions. Work also continues on the implementation of individual electoral registration as well as on our legislative programme, which includes the Transparency Bill. In addition, the Government has already demonstrated its willingness to support common sense changes to the rules governing the membership of the House of Lords.

Electoral Register

Chris Ruane: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister whether electors currently on the electoral register who fail to register under individual electoral registration (a) will be able to vote in the May 2015 General Election and (b) will be counted for the purposes of any boundary redrawing in December 2015.

Greg Clark: The transition to IER is being phased in over two years to allow those not individually registered to continue to be able to vote in the 2015 general election.
	The Government's current intention is for the transition to conclude later in 2015. However, the decision on when to end these transitional arrangements will be made after the next general election and with it the basis of the electoral register used in any redrawing of boundaries.

Electoral Register

Chris Ruane: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what progress he has made in implementing individual voter registration; what assessment he has made of the effect of individual voter registration on the size of the electorate; and if he will make a statement.

Greg Clark: The Government is on track to introduce individual electoral registration (IER) in the summer of 2014. The Government has recently successfully completed a test of the system, including the IT, people, and processes, which will be used to transfer the overwhelming majority of electors across to the new IER register in 2014. The Government report on this work can be viewed here:
	http://data.gov.uk/dataset/individual-electoral-registration-confirmation-dry-run-data
	The Electoral Commission and the Association of Electoral Administrators have produced readiness assessments for IER, all of which support implementation in line with proposed schedules. These are supplemented by a review of the programme undertaken by the Major Projects Authority. The reports will help inform the ministerial decision on whether to proceed with IER to the current timetable. An announcement will be made in due course.
	As outlined in the Individual Electoral Registration impact assessment the completeness of the register is expected to be approximately maintained.

EDUCATION

Academic Year

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what consultation his Department has carried out on schools choosing their own holidays and the effect of such a policy on families whose children attend different schools.

Elizabeth Truss: The Department for Education has consulted informally with head teachers and local authorities, as well as a wide range of organisations including teacher and head teacher unions, the Local Government Association, the Family and Childcare Trust, Netmums and Mumsnet. There was support for the proposal for all schools to be able to vary their school year. Around 48% of pupils already attend a school that can already do so. Schools have told us that they would continue to co-ordinate term-dates to avoid unnecessary disruption to parents or teachers.

Academies: Finance

George Galloway: To ask the Secretary of State for Education with reference to the report of the Education Funding Agency investigation into Kings Science Academy published in October 2013, whether he plans to bring forward amendments to the Academies Financial Handbook.

Edward Timpson: The Academies Financial Handbook sets out all areas, of HM Treasury's “Managing Public Money” that directly apply to academy trusts, as public bodies, including those operating free schools. It also incorporates the relevant requirements arising from academy trusts' status as companies and charities.
	This framework of financial accountability has been in place since the beginning of the academies programme. The framework is more extensive and robust than that which applies to local authority maintained schools as academy trusts are required to take full control of their financial affairs and must ensure regularity, propriety and value for money in their management of public funds. Trusts must ensure trustees and managers have the skills, knowledge and experience to run the academy trust; prepare financial plans so as to secure the academy trust's short-term and long-term financial health; have in place sound internal control and risk management processes; ensure trustees and managers monitor the academy trust's current and forecast financial position; be able to show that public funds have been used as intended by Parliament; and prepare annual financial statements which are audited by a registered auditor. Trust auditors are also required to provide an independent audit report on regularity.

Animal Welfare: Education

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will consider making it compulsory to teach children about animal welfare.

Elizabeth Truss: The new national curriculum programmes of study for science at key stages 1 and 2 include frequent references to animals and their environment. For example, in year 1 pupils should use the local environment throughout the year to explore and answer questions about animals in their natural habitat. They should also understand how to take care of animals taken from their local environment and the need to return them safely after study. In addition, pupils can learn about caring for animals in personal, social, health and economics education.
	It should be left to schools and teachers to decide what further topics and activities they offer to meet the learning needs of their pupils.

Children’s Centres

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Education 
	(1)  how many (a) paid and (b) unpaid staff are currently working in children’s centres;
	(2)  how many children’s centres have reduced their opening hours since 2010;
	(3)  which children’s centres have reduced their opening hours since 2010;
	(4)  how many children’s centres were within a 20 minute walk from their target users in (a) 2010 and (b) 2013.

Elizabeth Truss: The Department does not hold the information in the format requested.

Discrimination

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many complaints of age discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of his Department or its executive agencies by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many of those complaints resulted in disciplinary action.

Elizabeth Truss: Neither the Department nor its executive agencies received any complaints of age discrimination or harassment in any of the last five years.

Discrimination

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many complaints of homophobic or transphobic discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of his Department or its executive agencies by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many such complaints resulted in disciplinary action.

Elizabeth Truss: Neither the Department nor its Executive Agencies received any complaints of homophobic or transphobic discrimination in each of the last five years.

Free School Meals

Mel Stride: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how the costs of (a) additional staff, (b) kitchen adaptations and (c) other expenses required for the provision of universal free school meals for infants will be funded.

David Laws: Since the Deputy Prime Minister's announcement in September, departmental officials have held a number of discussions with schools, local authorities, representative organisations and other stakeholders in order to assess the challenges that primary schools will face in implementing this policy. We are also taking into account the experience of those primary schools that presently offer universal free school meals, as well as the evidence available to us from previous pilots of universal free school meal provision to inform our thinking about how the Department can best support schools.
	We expect to announce further details in due course.

Grammar Schools: Admissions

Martin Horwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Education which Minister in his Department is responsible for the oversight of admissions testing for grammar schools.

David Laws: I am the Minister responsible for school admissions policy in relation to state funded schools. However, responsibility for the oversight of admissions testing for grammar schools sits with the school's admissions authority. Grammar schools, like all state schools are accountable through the Schools Admission Code 2012 for ensuring that testing arrangements are fair, objective and transparent.
	The School Admissions Code can be found online, paragraphs 1.31 and 1.32 provide the requirements for test selection:
	http://www.education.gov.uk/schools/adminandfinance/schooladmissions/a00195/codes-regs

Hamzah Khan

George Galloway: To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will establish a fully independent inquiry into the circumstances leading to the death of Hamzah Khan in Bradford in 2009 and the changes that need to be made in public services following his death.

Edward Timpson: There is already an established statutory process, through serious case reviews, to establish what happened in such cases, why it happened and any changes that need to be made as a result. We expect reviews to provide full answers so that lessons can be learned and the public can hold their professionals agencies to account.
	On 13 November, Bradford Safeguarding Children Board published its serious case review into the tragic death of Hamzah Khan. I had serious reservations about the published review, which missed significant elements of what happened. That is why I wrote to the Independent Chair of the Bradford Safeguarding Children Board setting out 10 important questions that need to be answered and put in to the public domain. I have placed a copy of my letter of 13 November in the House Library.

Schools: Admissions

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many state-funded primary schools were operating at or above full capacity in each year since 2009-10.

David Laws: The information requested is in the following table:
	
		
			  Number of primary schools Number of primary schools that are not full Number of primary schools that are full or have one or more pupils in excess of school capacity 
			 2009/10 16,964 13,520 3,444 
			 2010/11 16,873 13,435 3,438 
			 2011/12 16,812 13,388 3,424 
		
	
	The data for May 2013 are currently being finalised and will be published later in the year.

Schools: Admissions

Martin Horwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what assessment he has made of the safeguards in place to ensure admissions testing is fair for students with learning difficulties.

David Laws: The Schools Admissions Code 2012 sets out for schools the requirements for admissions testing. Tests for all forms of selection must be clear and objective and give an accurate reflection of the child's ability or aptitude, irrespective of sex, race or disability. Additionally, schools must ensure that tests are accessible to children with special needs and disabilities, having regard to the reasonable adjustments for disabled pupils required under equalities legislation.
	Children with a special educational need statement that names a particular school on the statement must be admitted regardless of the outcome of any testing arrangements in place.
	The School Admissions Code can be found online, paragraphs 1.31 and 1.32 provide the requirements for test selection:
	http://www.education.gov.uk/schools/adminandfinance/schooladmissions/a00195/codes-regs

Schools: Fraud

David Ward: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what his policy is on a principal remaining in post after they have been interviewed under caution by the police regarding an alleged fraud at their school.

Edward Timpson: In a maintained school, the governing body is responsible for the general conduct within the school, including dealing with any disciplinary matters. In an academy or free school, the academy trust is responsible for these matters, including the handling of any disciplinary action.

Schools: Standards

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Education 
	(1)  how many (a) converter academies and (b) maintained schools achieved an annual increase in the proportion of students achieving five GCSEs A* to C than in (i) 2010-11, (ii) 2011-12 and (iii) 2012-13;
	(2)  how many (a) converter academies and (b) maintained schools achieved an annual increase in the proportion of students achieving five GCSEs A* to C including English and mathematics (i) 2010-11, (ii) 2011-12 and (iii) 2012-13.

Edward Timpson: The requested information for the 2010/11 and 2011/12 academic years has been provided in the following table.
	Data for the 2012/13 academic year will only be available once the performance tables have been published in January 2014.
	
		
			 GCSE and equivalent results of pupils at the end of key stage 4 by school type—Years: 2009/10 - 2011/12 (Final)—Coverage: England 
			  Converter academies(1)  
			  Number of schools(3) achieving an annual increase(4) in the proportion of students achieving: Percentage of pupils in schools achieving: Total number of schools(5) 
			  5+A*-C GCSE 5+A*-C GCSE inc. English and mathematics 5+A*-C GCSE 5+A*-C GCSE inc. English and mathematics  
			 2009/10(6, 7) n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a 
			 2010/11(8) 16 15 92 77 25 
			 2011/12(9) 404 299 88 69 680 
		
	
	
		
			  State-funded schools(2) 
			  Number of schools(3) achieving an annual increase(4) in the proportion of students achieving Percentage of pupils in schools achieving Total number of schools(5) 
			  5+A*-C GCSE 5+A*-C GCSE inc. English and mathematics 5+A*-C GCSE 5+A*-C GCSE inc. English and mathematics  
			 2009/10(6,7) 2,177 2,046 n/a n/a 2,870 
			 2010/11(8) 1,941 1,739 82 60 2,764 
			 2011/12(9) 1,269 1,059 83 58 2,044 
			 “n/a” = not applicable (1) Excludes special schools. (2) Includes local authority maintained mainstream schools (community schools, voluntary aided schools, voluntary controlled schools and foundation schools) and mainstream free schools, university technical colleges (UTCs) and studio schools.(3) School with suppressed results have been excluded. (4) Excludes schools with no pupils at the end of key stage 4 in the previous year. (5) Only includes schools with at least one pupil at the end of key stage 4. (6) No converter academies had published data in the 2009/10 performance tables. (7) Performance in 2009/10 has been compared to 2008/09. (8) Performance in 2010/11 has been compared to 2009/10. (9) Performance in 2011/12 has been compared to 2010/11. Source: 2011/12 key stage 4 attainment data (Final)

Secondary Education: Standards

George Galloway: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what assessment he has made of concerns expressed by the governing body of Immanuel College in Bradford on the proposed changes to the 2014 Key Stage 4 performance tables.

David Laws: We will respond directly to the concerns raised by the governing body of Immanuel college in Bradford about the changes to the way qualifications will be counted in performance measures.
	The Government had little option other than to take swift action to tackle the increasing use of early entry by some schools. The analysis we published in 2011, and Ofsted's report on early entry that was published in 2012, present compelling evidence that some schools are using high levels of early entry where there is limited or no evidence of the positive impact on standards.
	The Department's most recent research shows that, in 2012, only 62% of pupils with an initial C grade in GCSE mathematics retook their exams, whereas 98% of pupils with an initial D grade took their exams again. This same trend is seen in English, where 53% of pupils with an initial C grade retook their exams, compared to 96% of pupils with an initial D grade. This clearly demonstrates that many schools do not re-enter students with an initial C grade later on in the year, denying them the opportunity to improve their grades. This practice of 'banking' a C grade is clear evidence of schools not acting in the best interests of their pupils.
	Schools such as Immanuel college Bradford can continue to enter pupils early if they believe they are adequately prepared to gain the best possible result.

Teachers: Training

Kevin Brennan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what assessment he has made of regional teaching supply needs before the publication of the current provisional initial teacher training allocations.

David Laws: The Department estimates the number of trainee teachers required nationally each year.
	The Department builds in a 9% over-supply to ensure a competitive labour market and regional coverage across the country.

Travel

Chris Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what the cost of travel within the UK was for his Department in each year since 2010; and how much of this was spent on (a) hire cars, (b) helicopter hire, (c) hotel accommodation and (d) subsistence.

Elizabeth Truss: The Department for Education's financial systems record travel data at a top line level only and does not sub-categorise travel data to the level of granularity requested. Expenditure at this level is set out in the table.
	Data for 2011-12 are not comparable to data for earlier years and data for 2012-13 are not comparable to data for 2011-12 or for earlier years. This is because the Department has brought arm's length bodies (ALBs) within the Department over this period, with part of their remit transferring to the Department.
	
		
			 £ 
			 Category 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14(1) 
			 Travel(2) 3,015,339 3,260,663 6,112,209 2,608,563 
			 Subsistence 136,487 178,537 405,771 249,463 
			 (1) 2013-14 data refers to the first half of this financial year. (2) The Department makes no distinction between UK and non-UK travel when recording travel in its systems.

TREASURY

Banks: Loans

Ian Murray: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what progress is being made against the targets set for the Funding for Lending scheme; how many loans have been made in excess of £100 million under the scheme to date; and what proportion of funding under the scheme has been granted to each industrial sector.

Sajid Javid: The funding for lending scheme has contributed to a transformation of the bank funding environment and banks are now passing these on through improved credit availability and cheaper credit to the real economy including to small businesses.
	As part of the monitoring of the funding for lending scheme, the Bank of England publishes the net lending data of individual banks on a quarterly basis. The Bank does not hold details of individual loans, which are a commercial decision for providers, or breakdowns for different industrial sectors.

Corporation Tax

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many of the penalty notices issued to companies as a result of their failure to submit a corporation tax return on time in each of the years (a) 2009-10, (b) 2010-11, (c) 2011-12 and (d) 2012-13 were withdrawn as a result of successful appeals by the companies to whom they were issued; what value of penalties was waived as a result of such appeals in each such year; and if he will make a statement.

David Gauke: The information requested is not centrally collated and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Discrimination

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  how many claims at employment tribunals have been lodged against his Department on the grounds of pregnancy or maternity discrimination in each of the last five years; and how many such cases were found against his Department;
	(2)  how many complaints of discrimination related to pregnancy or maternity have been lodged against employees of his Department or its executive agencies by (a) current employees and (b) prospective employees in each of the last five years; and how many such complaints resulted in disciplinary action;
	(3)  how many complaints of age discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of his Department or its executive agencies by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many of those complaints resulted in disciplinary action;
	(4)  how many complaints of racial discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of his Department or its executive agencies by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many such complaints resulted in disciplinary action;
	(5)  how many complaints of sexual discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of his Department or its executive agencies by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many such complaints resulted in disciplinary action;
	(6)  how many complaints of disability discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of his Department or its executive agencies by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many such complaints resulted in disciplinary action;
	(7)  how many complaints of homophobic or transphobic discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of his Department or its executive agencies by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many such complaints resulted in disciplinary action.

Nicky Morgan: The Treasury has had no upheld complaints or employment tribunals regarding discrimination or harassment lodged against it over the past five years.

Environment Protection: Taxation

David Davies: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what his policy is on green levies; and if he will make a statement.

Nicky Morgan: The Prime Minister announced a review of green levies at Prime Minister's questions on 23 October 2013. This will report by the autumn statement.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what plans he has to improve mobile connectivity in constituencies affected by the proposed route for HS2.

Danny Alexander: As announced in the autumn statement 2012, the Government has included powers in the High Speed 2 Hybrid Bill to provide the capacity for a fixed communications network to be provided alongside the railway in the future, maximising the potential value for public investment.

Members: Correspondence

Jackie Doyle-Price: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when the hon. Member for Thurrock will receive a reply to her letter of 11 October 2013, addressed to Nick Lodge, Director-General HM Revenue and Customs, in respect of her constituents' tax credits.

Nicky Morgan: HM Revenue and Customs replied to my hon. Friend on 7 November 2013.

Mortgages: Government Assistance

Stephen McCabe: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  what proportion of Help to Buy applicants to date were aged 39 and over;
	(2)  how many people have had their application for a Help to Buy mortgage accepted in principle in (a) Birmingham, (b) Birmingham, Selly Oak constituency and (c) the West Midlands;
	(3)  what proportion of applicants to the Help to Buy scheme to date have not been first-time buyers. [Official Report, 2 December 2013, Vol. 571, c. 11MC.]

Sajid Javid: The Government is committed to making the aspiration of home ownership a reality for as many households as possible. The Government wants current and future generations to experience the benefits of owning their own home, in the same way their parents were able to. Since the financial crisis, larger deposit requirements and falling equity values mean many credit-worthy households cannot get a mortgage, or are trapped in their existing homes unable to take the next steps.
	In the one month since the publication of the scheme rules on 8 October, more than 2,000 people have put in applications to lenders under the Help to Buy: mortgage guarantee scheme totalling £365 million of new mortgage lending. Lenders will submit details of their loans to the scheme when it opens in January.
	More than three quarters of the applicants are first time buyers and many in their early thirties, demonstrating that the Help to Buy: mortgage guarantee scheme is helping hardworking people realise their home-owning aspirations.
	Once the Help to Buy: mortgage guarantee scheme opens in January, the Government will collect data on mortgages covered by the guarantee, and will report in due course.

Non-domestic Rates

William McCrea: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will bring forward legislative proposals to freeze business rates.

David Gauke: The Chancellor keeps all taxes, including business rates, under review.

Pensions: Scotland

William Bain: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make an assessment of the effect on the sustainability of (a) state and (b) private pensions in Scotland in the event of Scottish independence.

Esther McVey: I have been asked to reply 
	on behalf of the Department for Work and Pensions.
	It will be for the Scottish Government to assess the sustainability of state and private, pensions in the event of Scottish independence.
	The Institute for Fiscal Studies recently highlighted that the outlook for public borrowing in future is less favourable for Scotland than for the UK as a whole because of demographic pressures, including on the cost of pensions and pensioner benefits.
	The Scottish Government published its proposals for pensions on 23 September 2013 in Pensions in an independent Scotland, and has also published its White Paper this morning, which the UK Government is considering.

Public Sector Debt

Chris Ruane: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the UK's level of debt within the G7 in (a) May 2010 and (b) the most recent period for which figures are available by percentage of GDP.

David Gauke: In 2010 this Government inherited the largest deficit since the second world war, with the IMF forecasting the UK to have the largest budget deficit, and the fourth highest net debt-to-GDP ratio in the G7.
	In response, the Government set out a long-term sustainable economic plan to reduce the deficit. In the three years since 2009-10 the deficit has been reduced by a third as a percentage of GDP.
	The IMF's latest forecasts show the UK net debt level as a percentage of GDP falling below the G7 average by 2017.

Railways

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport about the benefits to the economy of good wi-fi and mobile connectivity across the UK rail network.

Danny Alexander: Government Ministers and officials exchange routine correspondence as part of the process of policy development and delivery. As was the case with previous Administrations, it is not the Government's practice to provide details of all such exchanges.
	The rail industry has agreed to fund and improve mobile services for passengers travelling by rail from mid-2014. Network Rail is leading industry co-ordination.
	Furthermore, as announced in the autumn statement 2012, the Government has included powers in the High Speed 2 Hybrid Bill to provide the capacity for a fixed communications network to be provided alongside the railway in the future, maximising the potential value for public investment.

Railways

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  what assessment he has made of the consequences for the UK economy of mobile not spots across the UK's rail network;
	(2)  what representations he has made to rail companies on the need for investment in wi-fi technology and mobile connectivity across the UK's rail network.

Danny Alexander: The Department for Transport lead on the Government's engagement with the rail industry and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport lead on the Government's engagement with the mobile network operators. The rail industry has agreed to fund and improve mobile services for passengers travelling by rail from mid-2014. Network Rail is leading industry co-ordination.

Staff

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  what proportion of employees in his Department are (a) female and (b) male, by each Civil Service pay grade;
	(2)  what proportion of employees in his Department is (a) white British and (b) black, Asian and from other minority ethnic groups, by each Civil Service pay grade;
	(3)  what proportion of employees in his Department have a physical or learning disability, by each Civil Service pay scale.

Nicky Morgan: HM Treasury publishes information on the proportion of its employees by gender, ethnicity and disability by each civil service pay scale. The most recent information, March 2013, is in HM Treasury's Annual Report and Accounts 2012-13, page 43, available on the Treasury's external website.

Tax Allowances: Reservoirs

Stephen Barclay: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate his Department has made of the potential cost to the public purse of introducing a tax relief for landowners on the capital cost of constructing a reservoir; and when his Department last made such an estimate.

David Gauke: The Department has made no estimate of the cost to the Exchequer of a tax relief for landowners on the capital cost of constructing a reservoir.

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Developing Countries: Females

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps she is taking to establish and increase partnerships with faith groups to tackle violence against women and girls. [R]

Lynne Featherstone: Faith and faith groups play an important role in international development. In June 2012, the coalition Government launched the “Faith Partnership Principles Paper” to strengthen and guide DFID's future collaboration with faith groups on international development. DFID is now working with a joint Working Group of faith groups to operationalize the principles.
	DFID is already collaborating with faith groups in our programming which tackles violence against women and girls. For example, in 2011, DFID-funded World Vision to launch 15 new projects, helping to protect 200,000 vulnerable girls from such harmful practices as child marriage in Malawi and sexual abuse in DRC. In Ethiopia, DFID is funding a programme to end early and forced marriage for 200,000 girls in the Amhara region. As a part of this programme, religious leaders are speaking out about the harmful effects of early and forced marriage in order to spearhead social change in their communities.
	As part of DFID's programme to tackle female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C), we have provided support to the UN Joint Programme on FGM/C. The programme has prompted 4,095 religious and traditional leaders in 15 African countries to make public declarations de-linking FGM/C from religion, including 1,070 leaders in Somalia, where an estimated 98% of women have undergone. FGM/C.

Developing Countries: Health Services

Martin Horwood: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what her policy is on including universal health coverage in the post-2015 millennium development goals.

Lynne Featherstone: The UK Government welcomed the Report of the High-Level Panel of Eminent Persons on the Post-2015 Development Agenda, including the emphasis it placed on improving access to health services through universal health coverage, which is seen as a benefit in itself as well as a means to improved health outcomes.

Developing Countries: Maternity Services

Martin Horwood: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps her Department is taking to increase provision of maternal health services in low and middle income countries.

Alan Duncan: DFID is investing in a broad range of cost-effective interventions to reduce maternal mortality in the poorest countries. Our programmes address care from pre-pregnancy to early childhood.
	Examples of our work include investments in family planning; antenatal, pregnancy and postnatal care; and vaccines, disease management and health systems strengthening. Our water, sanitation hygiene, nutrition, education and livelihoods programmes also contribute to achieving the millennium development goal on improving maternal health; We also work in partnership with others to improve value for money from combined global efforts for example through the Partnership for Maternal, Newborn and Child Health.

Disabled Staff

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what proportion of employees in her Department have a physical or learning disability, by each Civil Service pay grade.

Alan Duncan: The information is as follows:
	
		
			 Pay band Physical or learning disability (percentage) 
			 SCS (1)— 
			 A (G6, G7, and SEO) 0.56 
			 B (HEO and EO) 0.79 
			 C (AO and AA) (1)— 
			 (1) Number too low to disclose for data protection reasons. Notes: 1. These data set are made of DFID HCS staff. 2. Percentages are accurate to two decimal places and owing to rounding. 3. The sum may not be equal to 100%.

Discrimination

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development 
	(1)  how many complaints of age discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of her Department or its non-departmental public body by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many of those complaints resulted in disciplinary action;
	(2)  how many complaints of homophobic or transphobic discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of her Department by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many such complaints resulted in disciplinary action;
	(3)  how many claims at employment tribunals have been lodged against her Department on the grounds of pregnancy or maternity discrimination in each of the last five years; and how many such cases were found against her Department;
	(4)  how many complaints of discrimination related to pregnancy or maternity have been lodged against employees of her Department or its non-departmental public body by (a) current employees and (b) prospective employees in each of the last five years; and how many such complaints resulted in disciplinary action;
	(5)  how many complaints of sexual discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of her Department or its non-departmental public body by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many such complaints resulted in disciplinary action.

Alan Duncan: None.

Discrimination

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many complaints of racial discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of her Department by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many such complaints resulted in disciplinary action.

Alan Duncan: Fewer than five formal grievances alleging racial discrimination have been lodged against employees of DFID in the last five years to 31 October 2013. No complaint resulted in disciplinary action.
	We are withholding the precise number of allegations raised each year under section 40 (2) (Personal information) of the Freedom of Information Act 2000. Releasing these details would breach the legitimate expectation of an individual's right to the protection of their personal information.

Discrimination

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many complaints of disability discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of her Department and non-departmental public body by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many such complaints resulted in disciplinary action.

Alan Duncan: Fewer than five formal grievances alleging disability discrimination have been lodged against employees of DFID in the last five years to 31 October 2013. No complaint resulted in disciplinary action.
	We are withholding the precise number of allegations raised each year under Section 40 (2) (Personal information) of the Freedom of Information Act 2000. Releasing these details would breach the legitimate expectation of an individual's right to the protection of their personal information.

Overseas Aid

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what estimate her Department has made of the amount of money donated by the public for international aid causes and projects in the last year.

Alan Duncan: DFID survey a representative sample of UK NGOs to estimate the amount of private flows on international development which in 2012 totalled £849 million. This is estimated from the responses received from NGOs and is based on their own assessment of expenditure that is ODA-eligible.

Pay Television

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development whether offices of (a) her Department and (b) its non-departmental public body have access to Sky Sports or an equivalent premium sports television service; and what the cost to the public purse is in each case.

Alan Duncan: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Barnsley East (Michael Dugher), on 8 October 2013, Official Report, column 127W.

Staff

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what proportion of employees in her Department is (a) white British and (b) black, Asian and from other minority ethnic groups, by each Civil Service pay grade.

Alan Duncan: The information is as follows:
	
		
			 Percentage 
			 Pay band White- British Black, Asian and from other minority ethnic groups Unknown (includes 'prefer not to say' and 'not reported' 
			 SCS 1.58 2.46 0.79 
			 A (G6, G7, and SEO) 19,62 23.47 20.36 
			 B (HEO and EO) 11.41 7.37 779 
			 C (AO and AA) 2.41 1.48 1.25

Staff: Gender

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what proportion of employees in her Department are (a) female and (b) male, by each Civil Service pay grade.

Alan Duncan: At 18 November 2013 the proportion of female and males within DFID are shown in the following table:
	
		
			 Percentage 
			 Civil Service Pay Grade Female Male 
			 SCS 38 62 
			 Grade 6 46 54 
			 Grade 7 55 45 
			 SEO 49 51 
			 HEO 57 43 
			 EO 60 40 
			 AO 60 40 
			 AA 14 86 
			 Grand total 52 48

CABINET OFFICE

Civil Servants

Nick Brown: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the gender ratio is of staff of each grade in the Civil Service.

Nick Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	Letter from Glen Watson, dated November 2013
	As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question to the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the gender ratio is of staff of each grade in the Civil Service. 177436
	Please find as follows a table taken from the Annual Civil Service Employment Survey March 2013, with the breakdown of gender ratio of staff of each grade in the Civil Service.
	
		
			 Civil service employment by responsibility level and gender, all employees, 31 March 2013 
			 Headcount 
			 Responsibility level(1, 2, 3) Male Female Total Male ratio Female ratio 
			 Administrative      
			 Administrative assistant (AA) 15,743 16,960 32,703 48.1 51.9 
			 Administrative officer (AO) 67,923 96,879 164,802 41.2 58.8 
			       
			 Other management      
			 Executive officer (EO) 50,552 65,677 116,229 43.5 56.5 
			 Higher executive officer (HEO) 30,179 27,516 57,695 52.3 47.7 
			 Senior executive officer (SEO) 20,551 15,032 35,583 57.8 42.2 
			 Grade 7 14,799 11,049 25,848 57.3 42.7 
			 Grade 6 5,639 3,540 9,179 61.4 38.6 
			       
			 Senior management      
			 Senior civil service: Pay band 1/1A 1,995 1,235 3,230 61.8 38.2 
			 Senior civil service: Pay band 2 619 275 894 69.2 30.8 
			 Senior civil service: Pay band 3 127 54 181 70.2 29.8 
			 Senior civil service: Permanent Secretary 30 5 35 85.7 14.3 
			       
			 Unknown 2,145 311 2,456 87.3 12.7 
			       
			 All employees 208,157 238,222 446,379 46.6 53.4 
			 (1) With the exception of the senior civil service, Government Departments have delegated pay and grading. For statistical purposes Departments are asked to map their grades to a common framework by responsibility level. (2) This table shows staff in their substantive responsibility level unless on temporary promotion in which case staff are recorded at the higher responsibility level. (3) Unknown—Departments were not able to confirm the grades for these staff.

Discrimination

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office 
	(1)  how many claims at employment tribunals have been lodged against his Department on the grounds of pregnancy or maternity discrimination in each of the last five years; and how many such cases were found against his Department;
	(2)  how many claims at employment tribunals have been lodged against the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister on the grounds of pregnancy or maternity discrimination in each of the last five years; and how many such cases were found against his Office;
	(3)  how many claims at employment tribunals have been lodged against No. 10 Downing Street on the grounds of pregnancy or maternity discrimination in each of the last five years; and how many such cases were found against No. 10 Downing Street;
	(4)  how many complaints of discrimination related to pregnancy or maternity have been lodged against employees of his Department or its executive agencies by (a) current employees and (b) prospective employees in each of the last five years; and how many such complaints resulted in disciplinary action;
	(5)  how many complaints of discrimination related to pregnancy or maternity have been lodged against employees of the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister by (a) current employees and (b) prospective employees in each of the last five years; and how many such complaints resulted in disciplinary action;
	(6)  how many complaints of discrimination related to pregnancy or maternity have been lodged against employees of No. 10 Downing Street by (a) current employees and (b) prospective employees in each of the last five years; and how many such complaints resulted in disciplinary action;
	(7)  how many complaints of age discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of his Department or its executive agencies by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many of those complaints resulted in disciplinary action;
	(8)  how many complaints of age discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many of those complaints resulted in disciplinary action;
	(9)  how many complaints of age discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of No. 10 Downing Street by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many of those complaints resulted in disciplinary action;
	(10)  how many complaints of racial discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of his Department or its executive agencies by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many such complaints resulted in disciplinary action;
	(11)  how many complaints of racial discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many such complaints resulted in disciplinary action;
	(12)  how many complaints of racial discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of No. 10 Downing Street by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many such complaints resulted in disciplinary action;
	(13)  how many complaints of sexual discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of his Department or its executive agencies by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many such complaints resulted in disciplinary action;
	(14)  how many complaints of sexual discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many such complaints resulted in disciplinary action;
	(15)  how many complaints of sexual discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of No. 10 Downing Street by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many such complaints resulted in disciplinary action;
	(16)  how many complaints of disability discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of his Department or its executive agencies by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many such complaints resulted in disciplinary action;
	(17)  how many complaints of disability discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many such complaints resulted in disciplinary action;
	(18)  how many complaints of disability discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of No. 10 Downing Street by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many such complaints resulted in disciplinary action;
	(19)  how many complaints of homophobic or transphobic discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of his Department or its executive agencies by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many such complaints resulted in disciplinary action;
	(20)  how many complaints of homophobic or transphobic discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many such complaints resulted in disciplinary action;
	(21)  how many complaints of homophobic or transphobic discrimination or harassment have been lodged against employees of No. 10 Downing Street by (a) employees and (b) other individuals in each of the last five years; and how many such complaints resulted in disciplinary action.

Francis Maude: The Prime Minister's Office and the Deputy Prime Minister's Office are integral parts of the Cabinet Office.
	In the last five years fewer than five formal complaints have been lodged in the Cabinet Office on any of the grounds questioned.
	None resulted in disciplinary action. In line with the practice of successive Administrations, when numbers are five or fewer, exact numbers are not usually disclosed to protect individual privacy.
	No employment tribunal cases have been lodged on grounds of pregnancy or maternity related discrimination.

Electoral Register: Fraud

Chris Ruane: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many people were fined following a prosecution for electoral registration fraud in each of the last 10 years.

Greg Clark: The Government do not collect or hold these data.

Local Government: ICT

Phillip Lee: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office 
	(1)  if he will make it his policy that local authorities should permit employees to use their own personal technology devices in order to access non-sensitive information remotely, in accordance with the Public Services Network Code of Connection;
	(2)  if he will reduce the administrative burden imposed on local authorities of obligatory security checks, including the Baseline Personnel Security Standards, which will be instigated as part of the Public Services Network accreditation applications by 2015;
	(3)  if he will take steps to enable public sector bodies to sign up to the Public Services Network Code of Connection, and in cases where applications are refused, allow the public body to amend or provide suggestions for improvement on the aspects of their application which do not comply with the relevant standards, rather than having to re-submit the whole application.

Nick Hurd: PSN is a key part of the UK Government's ICT strategy and is at the heart of our shared services and cost reduction agendas, it provides a single more capable and open network enabling government to safely share services and collaborate in new ways that are more effective and efficient than ever before. It will also ensure that these public service networks have an appropriate level of protection.
	The Government supports in principle any action that delivers a more efficient and joined-up public sector, as long as they do not breach the statutory obligations and legal requirements on information handling or damage the Government's objective to make the UK one of the most secure places in the world to do business.
	Officials from the Cabinet Office are currently engaged with local authority officials and their representative bodies and have agreed revisions to the Public Services Network compliance regime. They have written to councils outlining the range of measures available to support organisations that demonstrate a genuine appetite and realistic plans to achieve compliance.

Mesothelioma

Tracey Crouch: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office 
	(1)  how many people have been (a) diagnosed with and (b) died from mesothelioma in each (i) parliamentary constituency and (ii) region in each of the last five years;
	(2)  how many (a) men and (b) women have (i) been diagnosed with and (ii) died from mesothelioma as a result of secondary exposure in each of the last five years;
	(3)  how many people have been (a) diagnosed with and (b) died from mesothelioma by (i) gender and (ii) age decile in each of the last five years.

Nick Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	Letter from Glen Watson, dated November 2013
	As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your recent questions asking the Minister for the Cabinet Office:
	1. How many people have been (a) diagnosed with and (b) died from mesothelioma in each (i) Parliament constituency and (ii) region in each of the last five years.
	2. How many (a) men and (b) women have (i) been diagnosed with and (ii) died from mesothelioma as a result of secondary exposure in each of the last five years.
	3. How many people have been (a) diagnosed with and (b) died from mesothelioma by (i) gender and (ii) age decile in each of the last five years.
	Table 1 provides the number of newly diagnosed cases of mesothelioma (incidence) in each region in England for each year from 2007 to 2011 (the latest year available). Please note that these numbers may not be the same as the number of people diagnosed with mesothelioma, because one person may be diagnosed with more than one primary mesothelioma although this is rare. The release of data on cancer incidence, particularly for small geographical areas and less common cancers, is constrained for reasons of confidentiality, to prevent the disclosure of patient information. Consequently it is not possible to provide incidence data for mesothelioma by parliamentary constituency.
	Table 2 provides the number of deaths from mesothelioma in each parliament constituency in England for each year from 2008 to 2012 (the latest year available). A copy of Table 2 has been placed in the House of Commons Library.
	Table 3 provides the number of deaths from mesothelioma in each region in England for each year from 2008 to 2012 (the latest year available).
	Table 4 provides the number of newly diagnosed cases of mesothelioma (incidence) by sex and-age deciles for each year from 2007 to 2011 in England (the latest year available). Lower age deciles have been aggregated to prevent disclosure of patient information.
	Table 5 provides the number of deaths in England from mesothelioma by sex and age decile for each year from 2008 to 2012.
	It cannot be determined how many men and women have (i) been diagnosed with or (ii) died from mesothelioma as a result of secondary exposure as this information is not routinely recorded on the cancer registration record.
	According to the Health and Safety Executive, while nearly all mesothelioma cases are caused by exposure to asbestos, a small number of cases occur in people with no history of exposure. There is evidence to suggest that these 'spontaneous mesotheliomas' comprise up to 5% of total cases. Further information can be found at:
	http://www.hse.gov.uk/statistics/causdis/mesothelioma/index.htm
	It is not possible to exclude spontaneous mesotheliomas from the figures provided.
	The latest published figures on cancer incidence in England are available on the National Statistics website at:
	http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/publications/re-reference-tables.html?edition-tcm%3A77-302299

Pay Television

Diana Johnson: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office whether offices of (a) his Department and (b) its executive agencies have access to Sky Sports or an equivalent premium sports television service; and what the cost to the public purse is in each case.

Francis Maude: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Barnsley East (Michael Dugher) on 8 October 2013, Official Report, column 170W.
	The Government Procurement Service does not have access to Sky Sports or an equivalent premium sports television service.

Public Sector: Procurement

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office on how many occasions since 2006 a company has been debarred from public sector procurement contracts in the UK as a result of (a) bribery, (b) fraud, (c) money laundering and (d) terrorism.

Nick Hurd: The information requested is not held centrally. It is the responsibility of individual contracting authorities to exclude suppliers in accordance with Public Contracts Regulations 2006.

Staff

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office 
	(1)  what proportion of employees in his Department are (a) female and (b) male, by each civil service pay grade;
	(2)  what proportion of employees in the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister are (a) female and (b) male, by each civil service pay grade;
	(3)  what proportion of employees in No. 10 Downing street are (a) female and (b) male, by each civil service pay grade;
	(4)  what proportion of employees in his Department is (a) white British and (b) black, Asian and from other minority ethnic groups, by each civil service pay grade;
	(5)  what proportion of employees in the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister is (a) white British and (b) black, Asian and from other minority ethnic groups, by each civil service pay grade;
	(6)  what proportion of employees in No. 10 Downing street is (a) white British and (b) black, Asian and from other minority ethnic groups, by each civil service pay grade;
	(7)  what proportion of employees in his Department have a physical or learning disability, by each civil service pay grade;
	(8)  what proportion of employees in the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister have a physical or learning disability, by each civil service pay grade;
	(9)  what proportion of employees in No. 10 Downing street have a physical or learning disability, by each civil service pay grade.

Francis Maude: The Prime Minister's Office and the Deputy Prime Minister's Office are integral parts of the Cabinet Office.
	The following table sets out the proportion of employees in my Department who are (a) female and (b) male by civil service grade:
	
		
			 October 2013 
			 Percentage 
			      Band A(1) Band B2(1)  Band B1(1) Band C(1)  
			  Permanent secretary(2) SCS3(2) SCS2(2) SCS1(2) Grade 6/7(2) SEO/HEO(2) B-Faststream(2) EO(2) AA/AO(2) Total 
			 Female 0.0 42.9 37.2 40.9 45.1 50.9 50.0 59.9 60.0 49.9 
			 Male 100.0 57.1 62.8 59.1 54.9 49.1 50.0 40.1 40.0 50.1 
			 (1) CO pay bands (2 )CS pay bands 
		
	
	Figures for ethnicity and disability by grade are not available. Cabinet Office does not compel staff to declare against workforce diversity indicators, including ethnicity and disability.

Unemployment: Young People

Chris Ruane: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the long-term youth unemployment rate was in each of the last 30 years.

Nick Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	Letter from Glen Watson, dated November 2013
	As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the long-term youth unemployment rate was in each of the last 30 years. 176737
	Information regarding youth unemployment is available from the Labour Force Survey. The number and proportion of 16 to 24 year olds who have been unemployed for over 12 months are included in the table. Estimates on a comparable basis prior to 1992 are not available.
	
		
			 Long term(1 )unemployment among people aged 16 to 24 July to September, each year UK, seasonally adjusted 
			 Thousand and percentage 
			  Level As a percentage of all unemployed 16 to 24 year olds 
			 1992 238 27 
			 1993 285 33 
			 1994 237 30 
			 1995 185 25 
			 1996 157 22 
			 1997 136 21 
			 1998 86 14 
			 1999 72 13 
			 2000 73 13 
			 2001 67 12 
			 2002 61 11 
			 2003 67 ¦12 
			 2004 66 11 
			 2005 75 12 
			 2006 103 15 
			 2007 112 16 
			 2008 121 16 
			 2009 198 21 
			 2010 218 24 
			 2011 258 25 
			 2012 266 28 
			 2013 282 29 
			 (1 )Unemployed for over 12 months Source: Labour Force Survey (LFS)

HEALTH

Neuromuscular Care Advisers: West Midlands

Stephen McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to increase the provision of neuromuscular care advisers and consultants in the West Midlands.

Norman Lamb: NHS England is responsible for commissioning specialised services, including neuromuscular services, and published the service specification ‘Neurosciences: Specialised Neurology (Adult)’ in July 2013. This directs that care is provided for patients with neuromuscular disorders via “multidisciplinary and cross organisational working”. This multi-disciplinary team includes neuromuscular care co-ordinators.
	NHS England is working with providers to ensure compliance.

GP Surgeries: Extended Opening

Julie Elliott: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what change there has been in the number of GP surgeries offering extended opening hours since May 2010.

Norman Lamb: The most recent general practitioner (GP) patient survey results (for July 2012 to March 2013) show that 77% of patients say their surgery is open at times that are convenient for them.
	Through the GP contract, from April 2014, we are promoting greater innovation in how practices offer extended access. This could be, for example, through networks of practices offering shared clinics at evenings and weekends.
	In addition, a £50 million fund has been set up to support innovative GP practices in improving services and access for their patients to include seven day per week opening and evening opening hours.

Congenital Hearth Disease Review

Stuart Andrew: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent progress has been made on the Congenital Heart Disease review.

Jane Ellison: NHS England is responsible for conducting the new review of congenital heart disease services.
	We understand that NHS England aims to work closely with all stakeholders to develop, test and revise a proposition for the review and to undertake work to identify a preferred approach to implementation by June 2014.

Integrated Care Pioneer Projects

David Rutley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what progress has been made by the integrated care pioneer projects.

Norman Lamb: Following over 100 expressions of interest and a rigorous selection process, we announced the final 14 integration pioneer sites on 1 November. These sites will receive dedicated support from national partners in integration to help them break down barriers and deliver integrated care at scale and at pace.

Long-term Chronic Conditions: GP Prescribing

Stephen Phillips: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent representations he has received on prescribing by GPs for people with long-term chronic conditions.

Norman Lamb: The Department has received a number of representations from hon. Members, noble Lords, patient groups, patients and the public on a number of issues relating to the prescribing of medicines for people with chronic long-term conditions.

Accident and Emergency Departments

Barbara Keeley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many higher trainee ST4 posts in emergency medicine were (a) available and (b) filled in (i) 2013-14 to date, (ii) 2012-13, (iii) 2011-12 and (iv) 2010-11.

Daniel Poulter: In emergency medicine the number of higher trainee ST4 posts available and filled for the dates requested are:
	
		
			 Recruitment year Vacancies Posts filled 
			 2010 Round 2.1 87 26 
			 2010 Round 2.2 82 17 
			 2011 Round 2.1 200 83 
			 2011 Round 2.2 113 21 
			 2012 Round 2.1 198 86 
			 2012 Round 2.2 135 25 
			 2013 Round 2.1 268 105 
			 2013 Round 2.2 193 (1)37 
			 (1) Offered Notes: 1. There are two recruitment rounds for ST4 per year. Due to the systems the data collection has to be shown in two individual rounds. The systems do not allow the identification of new vacancies therefore it is not possible to add the two rounds together as this would lead to double counting of vacancies. 2. National recruitment opens in November each year with interviews taking place from January into the summer. Posts will be taken up in August, i.e. for recruitment year 2010 national recruitment starts in November 2009, interviews take place from January 2010 through to the summer 2010 and posts will be taken up in August 2010. Source: Health Education England 
		
	
	The entry point into emergency medicine changed in 2008 from ST1 to ST4. This explains the increase in the number of ST4 posts available in 2011.

Accident and Emergency Departments

Barbara Keeley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many locums were used to fill vacant consultant posts in the NHS emergency departments in England in (a) 2010-11, (b) 2011-12 and (c) 2012-13.

Daniel Poulter: The number of locums used to fill vacant consultant posts in NHS emergency departments in England is not collected centrally.

Accident and Emergency Departments

Barbara Keeley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many whole time equivalent consultants, excluding locums, were working in NHS emergency departments in England in (a) 2010-11, (b) 2011-12 (c) 2012-13.

Daniel Poulter: The annual NHS work force census, published by the Health and Social Care Information Centre (HSCIC), shows the number of consultants, excluding locums, working in NHS accident and emergency (A&E) departments in England as at 30 September each year. The September 2013 data will be published in March 2014.
	The numbers of full-time equivalent consultants, excluding locums, working in NHS A&E departments in England in 2010, 2011 and 2012 are shown in the following table:
	
		
			 Hospital and Community Health Services: Consultants within A&E speciality 
			 Full-time equivalents 
			 As at 30 September each year 2010 2011 2012 
			 A&E 1,013 1,100 1,230 
			 Source: HSCIC Medical and Dental Workforce Census

Beef: Horse Meat

William McCrea: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the location is of each meat firm (a) prosecuted and (b) closed for selling horsemeat as beef.

Jane Ellison: This issue relates to an ongoing complex criminal investigation by the police and as such we are unable to provide further information until the investigations conclude.

Beef: Horse Meat

William McCrea: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many cases of people mis-selling horsemeat as beef are outstanding.

Jane Ellison: This issue relates to an ongoing complex criminal investigation by the police and as such we are unable to provide further information until the investigations conclude.
	In connection with the testing of beef products for horse DNA carried out by industry and local authorities in the wake of this incident, we can confirm that there are no cases outstanding. All positive results for horse DNA are published on the Food Standards Agency's website. The latest set of industry test results was published on 7 October. Of the 9,588 new results no horse meat/DNA at or above the 1% reporting threshold was detected.

Breast Cancer

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment his Department has made of recent research reported to indicate that multivitamins can improve the chances of older women surviving breast cancer.

Jane Ellison: The Department has made no specific assessment of recent research reported to indicate that multivitamins could improve the chances of older women surviving breast cancer.

Cancer: Drugs

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many patients in Portsmouth received funding through the cancer drugs fund in each of the last three years.

Norman Lamb: Information on the number of patients who have had cancer drugs funded by South Central strategic health authority (SHA) for the period October 2010 to end March 2013 is shown in the table.
	
		
			  Number of patients funded in:  
			 SHA 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 Total number of patients funded October 2010 to end March 2013(1) 
			 South Central 290 1,170 2,288 3,748 
			 (1 )Some individual patients may be double-counted where a patient has received more than one drug treatment through the Cancer Drugs Fund. Source: Information provided to the Department by SHAs 
		
	
	Information on patients funded through the Cancer Drugs Fund is not collected at city level.
	NHS England took responsibility for the fund from April 2013 and is collecting data on the use of the fund from four regional teams. We are advised that between 1 April and end of September 2013, 2,089 patients in the South of England area were funded.

Dementia

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people have been diagnosed with dementia in (a) England and (b) Wales by age group in each of the last three years.

Norman Lamb: The number of people recorded on practice disease registers with dementia in England is shown in the following table. The data are not available by age groups.
	Diagnosis for dementia in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland is a matter for the devolved Administrations.
	
		
			 Prevalence of dementia in England in 2010-11 to 2012-13 
			  Number of patients on dementia register 
			 2010-11 266,697 
			 2011-12 293,738 
			 2012-13 318,669 
			 Source: Health and Social Care Information Centre

Electronic Cigarettes

David Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what estimate he has made of the number of people who have stopped smoking tobacco cigarettes in favour of electronic cigarettes in the last year for which figures are available;
	(2)  what assessment he has made of demand for electronic cigarettes and nicotine replacement therapy; and if he will make a statement.

Jane Ellison: The Smoking Toolkit Study is a national study of smoking and smoking cessation in England. The most recent data from the survey suggest that electronic cigarette use by tobacco smokers for any purpose has increased from around 2% in 2011 to around 14% in August 2013. If this trend was reflected across the United Kingdom it would translate to around 1.4 million smokers who have used electronic cigarettes. The data does not distinguish between use for quitting or partial substitution, nor does it allow for estimates of duration of use. It is not possible to differentiate the proportion of those who have stopped smoking tobacco cigarettes. What data is available on use of electronic cigarettes in quitting suggests that these are about as effective as nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) in supporting quit attempts. Electronic cigarettes are being used in approximately 20% of quit attempts, which is similar to the use of NRT.

Food

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent assessment his Department has made of research into the long-term effects of low carbohydrate, high protein diets on cardiovascular disease.

Jane Ellison: Public Health England (PHE) has not made any recent assessment of research on low carbohydrate, high protein diets and cardiovascular disease. The Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition (SACN) is currently reviewing the evidence on carbohydrates and health, including cardiovascular disease. A draft report is expected to go out to public consultation in mid-2014. Following this, SACN will consider the responses and finalise their report. Once PHE has received SACN's advice and final report, we will consider whether our advice on carbohydrate intake requires updating.

Food

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 7 November 2013, Official Report, column 320W, on food, what assessment he has made of the average number of calories burnt each day by (a) males and (b) females in each year for which data are available.

Jane Ellison: No national data are available on average daily calories burnt (energy expenditure).
	Energy expenditure includes energy used by the body to stay alive (e.g. in breathing) and in physical activity. Physical activity is the most variable part of energy expenditure, and obtaining quantitative estimates of population activity levels over time is subject to considerable inaccuracy and bias because measures are largely based on self-reported data, observational studies or indirect measures (e.g. heart rate monitoring).
	The National Diet and Nutrition Survey assesses energy expenditure using doubly labelled water in a small sub-sample of participants in order to assess the quality of the dietary assessment method. This is the most accurate way to estimate energy expenditure by free-living people, but the number of participants in this study is not sufficient to estimate energy expenditure by the population as a whole.

General Practitioners

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what continuing professional development and training GPs are required to undertake in relation to new techniques for cancer diagnosis.

Daniel Poulter: Medical revalidation, which commenced in December 2012, requires all doctors with a licence to practice medicine in the United Kingdom, to provide evidence, through their annual appraisals, of how they have kept their knowledge and skills up to date, including the latest techniques, technologies and research. These would naturally include those related to cancer diagnosis and treatment.
	General practitioners (GPs) have to demonstrate that they are actively maintaining their skills through continual professional development and are aware of new clinical guidelines which are regularly published by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence and disseminated to GPs.

General Practitioners

Rehman Chishti: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the number and cost of missed GP appointments to the NHS.

Daniel Poulter: The Department does not collect data centrally on numbers of general practitioner appointments, nor on those missed or rescheduled.
	The NHS constitution emphasises patients’ responsibilities, stating that patients
	“should keep appointments or cancel within reasonable time”.

General Practitioners

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the number of full-time equivalent GPs per 1,000 patients in (a) 2010, (b) 2011, (c) 2012 and (d) 2013.

Daniel Poulter: The Health and Social Care Information Centre (HSCIC) General and Personal Medical Services Statistics show the number of general practitioners (GPs) per. 1,000 registered patients at 30 September each year. The latest available statistics are as at 30 September 2012. The HSCIC will publish headcount numbers of GPs per 1,000 patients as at 30 September 2013 in the NHS annual workforce census in March 2014 and full-time equivalent figures will be available on request after that date.
	The number of full-time equivalent GPs per 1,000 registered patients in 2010 to 2012 is shown in the following table.
	
		
			 General Practitioners (excluding retainers and registrars) FTE per 1,000 registered patients: England 2010-12 
			 Full-time equivalent 
			  As at 30 September 
			  2010 2011 2012 
			 GPs (excluding retainers and registrars) per 1,000registered patients 0.570 0.568 0.567 
			 Number of GPs in England 35,243 35,319 35,871 
			 Source: The Health and Social Care Information Centre General and Personal Medical Services Statistics

General Practitioners: Northamptonshire

Chris Heaton-Harris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much his Department spent per capita in each general practice in Northamptonshire in the last year for which data is available.

Daniel Poulter: Information is not available in the format requested.
	General practitioner (GP) practices hold contracts with NHS England to undertake work for the national health service. Funding for payments to GP practices is included in the general allocation made to NHS England by the Department.
	Information supplied by NHS England on per capita expenditure for general practices in Northamptonshire for 2012-13 is shown in the following table:
	
		
			 Per capita expenditure for general practices in Northamptonshire for 2012-13 
			 Practice name 2012-13 costs List size £/Capita 
			 Forest Gt Medical Centre(1) 10,132 46,096 0.22 
			 The Lakeside Surgery 5,453,092 46,096 118.30 
			 Queensview Medical Centre 1,010,271 8,584 117.69 
			 CCG—Brackley HC 466,914 4,512 103.48 
			 Queensway Medical Centre 1,470,182 11,835 124.22 
			 Headlands Surgery 1,241,015 10,127 122.55 
			 Harborough Field Surgery 1,494,030 11,270 132.57 
			 The Pines Surgery 1,008,301 8,287 121.67 
			 Moulton Surgery 1,202,372 9,572 125.61 
			 Delapre Medical Centre 1,761,766 17,066 103.23 
			 Redwell Medical Centre 1,505,776 12,309 122.33 
			 King Edward Road Surgery 1,132,188 10,959 103.31 
			 Eskdaill Medical Centre 1,305,754 11,941 109.35 
			 Leicester Terrace HC 1,604,067 13,006 123.33 
			 Danetre Medical Practice 1,486,208 12,682 117.19 
			 Wansford Surgery 1,108,408 6,646 166.78 
			 Springfield Surgery 1,166,930 8,977 129.99 
			 Long Buckby Practice 812,274 5,754 141.17 
			 Rillwood Medical Centre 415,264 3,445 120.54 
			 Desborough Rothwell Pracs 2,752,600 20,023 137.47 
			 Towcester Medical Centre 1,063,350 8,054 132.03 
			 Oundle Surgery 1,763,043 10,799 163.26 
			 Rushden Medical Centre 1,582,880 10,885 145.42 
			 The Mounts Medical Centre 1,821,252 14,950 121.82 
			 CCG—Albany House MC 1,830,931 16,180 113.16 
			 Langham Place Surgery 1,081,409 9,098 118.86 
			 Spinney Brook Medical Centre 1,378,925 10,685 129.05 
			 Abington Park Surgery 1,218,540 12,086 100.82 
			 The Cottons 1,157,157 9,403 123.06 
			 CCG—Byfield MC 1,060,328 7,843 135.19 
			 CCG—Abbey House Surgery 2,392,152 19,233 124.38 
			 Molla—WFHC 468,245 3,669 127.62 
			 Kingsthorpe Medical Centre 677,073 5,588 121.17 
			 Linden Medical Centre 1,873,749 13,862 135.17 
			 CCG—Burton Latimer HC 1,468,877 12,164 120.76 
			 Dryland Surgery 1,629,070 12,686 128.41 
			 Woodview Medical Centre 1,167,642 9,840 118.66 
			 Harlestone Road Surgery 2,415,572 20,668 116.87 
			 Park Avenue Surgery 1,157,434 10,153 114.00 
			 CCG—Abington Park 1,830,969 13,816 132.53 
			 Parklands Medical Centre 1,470,198 11,906 123.48 
			 CCG—Abbey Medical Practice 2,813,154 15,639 179.88 
			 CCG—Brook MC—Ecton 756,932 6,632 114.13 
			 Washington House Surgery 1,145,439 8,782 130.43 
			 The Crescent Medical Centre 471,910 3,631 129.97 
			 Weavers Medical Centre 1,665,757 16,177 102.97 
			 CCG—The Parks Medical(1) 104,039 19,318 5.39 
			 Crick Surgery 698,068 4,466 156.31 
			 Wootton Medical Centre 685,536 5,585 122.75 
			 County Surgery 467,476 3,919 119.28 
			 Clarence Avenue Surgery 525,310 4,594 114.35 
			 Woodsend Medical Centre 1,344,578 9,089 147.93 
			 The Saxon Spires Practice 2,110,271 14,593 144.61 
			 Nene Valley Surgery 867,951 5,655 153.48 
			 Denton Village Surgery 916,484 5,981 153.23 
			 Marshall Road Surgery 264,814 2,333 113.51 
			 CCG—Bugbrooke Medical 1,394,263 9,646 144.54 
			 Greenview Surgery 897,191 7,029 127.64 
			 Wollaston/Bozeat Practice 580,829 4,853 119.68 
			 Higham Ferrers Surgery 761,077 5,360 141.99 
			 Summerlee Medical Centre 169,197 1,126 150.26 
			 Earls Barton Medical Centre 618,575 4,992 123.91 
			 Studfall Medical Centre 334,677 1,761 190.05 
			 Danes Camp Surgery 855,785 8,339 102.62 
			 Studfall Ptnrship Sanyal 544,480 4,534 120.09 
			 CCG—The Meadows Surgery(1) 41,493 5,285 7.85 
			 Lakha—WFHC 600,627 5,973 100.56 
			 Penvale Park Medical Centre 443,501 4,141 107.10 
			 The Brook Health Centre 1,225,060 8,316 147.31 
			 Maple Access Partnership 1,040,895 5,656 184.03 
			 Great Oakley Medical Centre 986,623 9,188 107.38 
			 Mawsley Village Surgery 848,974 4,621 183.72 
			 Kings Heath HC 851,277 4,248 200.39 
			 Irchester Health Centre 466,202 4,272 109.13 
			 CCG—Dogra + Hassan WFHC(1) 27,399 3,636 7.54 
			 CCG—Harlestone Road(1) 102,564 20,668 4.96 
			 Christchurch Medical Centre(2, 3) 126,188 10,959 11.51 
			 Christchurch Medical Centre(2, 3) 136,704 12,086 11.31 
			 Lakeside Plus(1) 578,627 46,096 12.55 
			 Lower Street PC Centre(2, 3) 415,857 11,941 34.83 
			 Lower Street PC Centre(2, 3) 503,406 16,177 31.12 
			 Midland Road Surgery 646,729 5,285 122.37 
			 Roade/Blisworth/Hanslope 2,872,777 19,318 148.71 
			 Upper Nene Village Practice 1,890,528 12,157 155.51 
			 Whitefields Surgery(1) 102,883 17,066 6.03 
			     
			 Total 93,818,444 923,878 101.55 
			 (1) The per capita figures are lower for these practices as they have either closed down or merged with other practices. These figures are therefore not comparable to other practices on the list. (2) These centres appear twice on the list as two practices share premises. In 2012-13, these practices received payment under their collective name. (3) NHS England does not have access to records of payments made directly by former primary care trusts to limited companies set up by some practices to manage their business. NHS England has advised that this is likely to be the reason that the per capita expenditure appears to be relatively low for these practices. Source: NHS England.

Health Services: Prisons

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  for the 12 prisons contractually managed by the private sector in England and Wales, who is providing health services; when were the contracts signed; for how long they run; how much they cost; and how they are performing against the contract provision;
	(2)  who commissions health services for each of the 12 prisons contractually managed by the private sector in England and Wales.

Norman Lamb: As of November 2013, there are 12 privately managed prisons in England, with health care commissioned and provided under private finance initiative (PFI) contracts in seven prisons. NHS England has commissioned prison health care since 1 April 2013 and commissions health care in the five other privately managed prisons. Health care commissioning at HMP Parc is also provided under a PFI contract and is the responsibility of the Welsh Government.
	Many current health care contracts across the prison estate were established prior to NHS England acquiring commissioning responsibility. NHS England is retendering contracts as they come up for renewal. Providers are therefore subject to change from April 2014.
	We are advised by the National Offender Management Service that the current cost of health care within PFI contracts is not identifiable, since it is included in the contracted prison place daily price for each PFI contract. However, information is available about total health care spending in each of the privately managed prisons in the most recently completed financial year and this is shown in the table.
	Information about contract performance in PFI-contracted prisons or privately managed prisons where NHS England commissions health care is not collected centrally by the Department or by NHS England.
	The available information about health care in each of the privately managed prisons in England is shown in the following table.
	
		
			 Contracted out prisons 
			 Privately managed prison Main contractor Prison sub-contractor (operator) Healthcare commissioner and start date of healthcare contract Healthcare provider End date of healthcare contract Cost of healthcare provision for 2012-13 (£000) 
			 HMP Altcourse Fazakerley Prison Services Ltd G4S Healthcare is provided under main PFI contract from 20 December 1995 G4S 30 May 2023 361 
			 HMP Ashfield Pucklechurch Custodial Services Ltd Serco NHS England from 1 April 2013 Serco Health (1)— 376 
			 HMP Birmingham G4S Care and Justice Services (UK) Ltd G4S NHS England from 1 April 2013 1. Birmingham and Solihull Mental Health NHS Trust 2. Birmingham Community NHS Trust (1)— 4,721 
			 HMP Bronzefield Ashford Prison Services Ltd Sodexo Healthcare is provided under main PR contract from 20 December 2002 Serco 16 June 2029 515 
			 HMP Doncaster Serco Ltd Serco NHS England from 1 April 2013 Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust (1)— 3,962 
			 HMP Dovegate Moreton Prison Services Ltd Serco Healthcare is provided under main PFI contract from 27 September 1999 Serco (2)— 844 
			 HMP Forest Bank Agecroft Prison Management Ltd Sodexo Healthcare is provided under main PFI contract from 6 July 1998 Sodexo 19 January 2025 669 
			 HMP Lowdham Grange Lowdham Grange Prison Services Ltd Serco Healthcare is provided under main PFI contract from 7 November 1996 Serco (2)— 249 
			 HMP Oakwood (formerly Featherstone II) G4S Care and Justice Services (UK) Ltd G4S NHS England from 1 April 2013 Worcestershire Healthcare NHS Trust (1)— 3,250 
			 HMP Peterborough Peterborough Prison Management Ltd Sodexo Healthcare is provided under main PFI contract from 14 February 2003 Serco 27 March 2030 322 
			 HMP Rye Hill Onley Prison Services Ltd G4S Healthcare is provided under main PFI contract from 23 July 1999 G4S 20 January 2026 95 
			 HMP Thameside (formally Belmarsh West) BWP Project Services Limited Serco NHS England from 1 April 2013 Harmoni (1)— 3,918 
			 (1) Current health care provider contract was established prior to NHS England acquiring its commissioning role from 1 April 2013. NHS England is retendering contracts as they expire and current providers are subject to change after April 2014. (2) In negotiation for retendering from September 2014. Source: Department of Health, NHS England and National Offender Management Service

Health Visitors

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many Sure Start health visitors there were in (a) 2010, (b) 2011, (c) 2012 and (d) 2013.

Daniel Poulter: The total number of health visitors(1 )in England in each of these years is shown in the following table:
	
		
			 August each year Health visitors (full-time equivalent) 
			 2010 7,907 
			 2011 7,677 
			 2012 8,067 
			 2013 (2)9,066 
			 (1) The figures refer to the Health and Social Care Information Centre's collection of numbers of ‘qualified health visitors’ rather than ‘Sure Start health visitors’. For the purposes of reporting health visitor work force expansion, the terms ‘health visitor’ and ‘Sure Start health visitor’ are one and the same. (2) Until December 2012, health visitor work force data were published by the Health and Social Care Information Centre as part of the Hospital and Community Health Services work force publication. It was based on use of the electronic staff record (ESR) and thus did not include health visitors employed in organisations such as local authorities and social enterprises that do not usually use the ESR. A new health visitor minimum data set was published from December 2012, which includes health visitors employed by organisations not using the ESR. This supports the Government's commitment to recruit 4,200 more health visitors by April 2015 and better reflects the true health visiting work force.

Irritable Bowel Syndrome

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what discussions he has had with health boards about the benefits of hypnotherapy to address irritable bowel syndrome.

Norman Lamb: Ministers have had no discussions with health boards about the benefits of hypnotherapy to address irritable bowel syndrome.

Mental Illness

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 7 November 2013, Official Report, column 327W, on stress, what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of mindfulness interventions in reducing stress, anxiety and depression in patients with (a) cancer and (b) heart disease.

Norman Lamb: The Department is aware of the impact that stress can have on illnesses such as cancer and heart disease. We know that access to psychological services at the point of diagnosis can support patients by meeting their emotional as well as physical needs.
	The Department has not made an assessment of the effectiveness of mindfulness interventions. However, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence has evaluated their effectiveness and recommends the use of mindfulness-based therapies as a psychological intervention for the prevention of relapse in its guideline “Depression: the treatment and management of depression in adults”, which is available at the following web address:
	www.nice.org.uk/nicemedia/live/12329/45888/45888.pdf

Muscular Dystrophy: North West

Tony Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what discussions he has had with specialised commissioners in the North West to set up a North West neuromuscular delivery network with neuromuscular co-ordinator support; and if he will make a statement.

Norman Lamb: There have been no ministerial discussions on this matter.
	NHS England is responsible for the commissioning of specialised services, improving both the quality and consistency of specialised care. These new national commissioning arrangements will significantly enhance equity of access and outcomes for patients across the country.

NHS: Drugs

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what steps he is taking to align the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence approval process and the NHS England commissioning development process for medicines and diagnostic technologies to ensure patients have quicker access to new medicines;
	(2)  whether there is a time limit for the uptake of National Institute for Health and Care Excellence approved diagnostic technologies.

Norman Lamb: In the great majority of cases, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) publishes draft or final technology appraisal guidance on significant new drugs within a few months of their launch. National health service commissioners are legally required by regulations to fund those treatments recommended by NICE in its technology appraisal guidance.
	The report Innovation Health and Wealth: Accelerating adoption and diffusion in the NHS, published in December 2011, identified the need to reduce variation and strengthen compliance of uptake of treatments recommended in NICE technology appraisals. As part of its implementation of Innovation Health and Wealth, NHS England is working with a wide range of stakeholders through the NICE Implementation Collaborative to promote the uptake of NICE guidance. NHS England and the Health and Social Care Information Centre also publish quarterly updates to the Innovation Scorecard, which provides information to the NHS, industry, patients and the public on uptake of NICE-recommended treatments. The latest iteration is at:
	www.hscic.gov.uk/catalogue/PUB11832
	NHS England also issued commissioning policy guidance to the NHS in April 2013 on the implementation and funding of NICE technology appraisal recommendations which is available at:
	www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/cp-05.pdf
	There is no statutory funding requirement for diagnostics recommended by NICE in its diagnostics guidance, nor is there any time limit for the uptake of such technologies. NHS organisations are expected to take NICE's guidance into account in making funding decisions for individual medical diagnostic technologies.

NHS: Redundancy Pay

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 8 November 2013, Official Report, column 381W, on NHS: redundancy pay, if he will publish those figures for 2008-09 and 2009-10 which were collected on a different basis.

Daniel Poulter: The cost of national health service staff redundancy payments in 2008-09 and 2009-10 are set out in the following table.
	
		
			 Termination benefits redundancy(1) 
			 NHS £000(2) 
			 2009-10 22,233 
			 2008-09 43,903 
			 (1) The figures include primary care trusts, strategic health authorities and NHS trusts but not foundation trusts. (2) Source—NHS (England) Summarised Accounts 2008-09 and 2009-10.

Pay Television

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether offices of (a) his Department and (b) its executive agencies have access to Sky Sports or an equivalent premium sports television service; and what the cost to the public purse is in each case.

Daniel Poulter: Neither the Department nor Public Health England nor the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency have access to Sky Sports or an equivalent premium sports television service.

School Milk

Tom Clarke: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what discussions he has had with suppliers for the nursery milk scheme on setting a cap on the price of milk bought for use by that scheme.

Daniel Poulter: Setting a cap on the price of milk bought for use in the Nursery Milk Scheme is one of the four options outlined in the Government's consultation ‘Next Steps for Nursery Milk’ published in June 2012. Stakeholders invited to respond to the consultation included milk suppliers, and many did so before the consultation closed in October 2012. As part of stakeholder engagement departmental officials also met with several suppliers and umbrella organisations representing milk suppliers.

School Milk

Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proportion of eligible children received milk through the Nursery Milk Scheme in the 10 (a) most and (b) least deprived local authorities in Great Britain.

Daniel Poulter: The specific information requested is not available. However, nationally, it is estimated that about 60% of all under-fives in eligible child care settings are claiming free milk under the Nursery Milk Scheme.
	The Government remains committed to maintaining free nursery milk as a universal benefit for all under-fives in nursery and child care settings, as stated within the June 2012 consultation document about modernising the Nursery Milk Scheme.

School Milk

Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment his Department has made of the potential effect of changes to his Nursery Milk Scheme on vulnerable children.

Daniel Poulter: The Department's consultation on modernisation of the Nursery Milk Scheme, entitled ‘Next steps for Nursery milk’ was published in June 2012. A copy has already been placed in the Library. This was accompanied by an equalities impact assessment that considered the impact of any change to the scheme upon children with disabilities, and on those providing child care and educational services to these children.
	This concluded that
	“none of the options for change will impact on disability issues for childcare providers or producers, suppliers, distributors and retailers of milk”.
	The equalities impact assessment also contains a commitment to ensure that if a direct supply option is chosen then the Department will ensure, through the procurement process, that any third parties contracted to directly supply milk to child care providers fully comply with the equality duty.
	A copy of the equalities impact assessment ‘Equality Analysis—Next Steps for Nursery Milk’ has been placed in the Library. It is also available at:
	www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/182328/Equality_Analysis_-_Next_Steps_for_Nursery_Milk.pdf

Social Services

Pat Glass: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the effects of social care budget changes on attendances at accident and emergency departments.

Norman Lamb: Joining up health and social care services is a key priority for this Government. The national health service will provide £900 million this year and £1.1 billion next year to support social care services with a health benefit and promote joint working, and in 2015-16 we will introduce a £3.8 billion pooled budget for health and social care.
	The number of bed days lost because of delays attributable to social care was nearly 50,000 lower in 2012-13 than in 2011-12.